


Little Pieces

by pleasanthell



Series: All The Pieces [1]
Category: Rookie Blue
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-21
Updated: 2014-01-27
Packaged: 2017-12-27 06:02:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 77,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/975289
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pleasanthell/pseuds/pleasanthell
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She couldn’t hear or see anything, but Gail. She held Gail’s eyes until she was yanked to the side. Holly stumbled and Ford lost his grip on her. She realized that she was free and started running for the officers. Ford raised his gun and took one last shot before bullets from at least ten different guns riddled his chest.</p><p>“Holly!” Gail shrieked, yanking off her balaclava and running to Holly who had fallen from the force of the bullet. Her head hit a desk as she fell and she was bleeding from a gunshot wound somewhere Gail couldn’t pinpoint.</p><p>Holly tried to stay awake. She tried to fight everything to stay awake. She could hear her name being yelled, but everything around her went black.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Alternate Season 4 Finale

Gail stood in front of the building where Oliver was held. She couldn’t believe that that was it. She was expecting gunfire and explosions. She was expecting something more dramatic.

But it came over the radio that shots were fired at 15. An officer was shot and there was a hostage situation. There were only a handful of people left in the building, but Ford was still holding the few in. Someone else may have been shot.

Oliver started to panic as he was being put in the ambulance. “Is it Celery? Someone find out who it was.” Oliver instructed and Gail saw that Nick was already on the phone.

Everyone stared at Nick while he was being told the news. Even the paramedics stopped what they were doing. Nick listened and then said, “Swarek was shot.” Then he heard something else. His eyes felt to Gail.

Gail was immediately filled with panic. “Who is it?”                                                               

Nick told the person on the phone that he’d be right there. “They don’t know.” He tried to touch her arm, guiding her to his squad car. Nick looked away guiltily.

Gail yanked her arm away, “Nick. Tell me.”

“There are a handful of hostages,” He sighed, “Most of them are cops, but…Holly’s in there.”

“Is she the one that got shot?” Gail demanded.

Nick shrugged, “They don’t know. Someone just told Andy that Holly was walking around carrying a folder, looking for someone.”

It took half a second for Gail to take off in a dead sprint for the closest squad car. Nick caught up with her as she fumbled with the handle of the door. Nick leaned back on the door, “Gail you can’t just go in there guns blazing.”

“I have to go get her. I have to help her,” Gail said evenly, and almost eerily calm. “I’m a police officer. It’s my job.”

“I know you like her, but the SWAT team is on their way,” Nick explained, “They’ll get her out.”

Gail tried to keep her calm. She tried to stop herself from caring too much. She tried to explain it to Nick. “I have to go.”

Nick knew he wasn’t going to stop her. He looked around, “C’mon. I’ll drive.”

=+=+=+=+=+

Holly looked around the parade room. She had her hands over Swarek’s wound, trying to stop the bleeding.

“I need a first aid kit,” Holly murmured and looked around. She started to get up.

Cruz stopped Holly, “I’ll get it.”

“Detective,” Holly scooted over to Swarek, “I need you to lay still.”

He nodded and laid completely flat on his back, “It’s bad isn’t it?”

“If you compare your abdomen to a healthy one without a bullet in it, then yes,” Holly told him, brushing away his jacket.

Swarek chuckled, “You’re funny. I like that.”

Cruz returned with the first aid kit. She set it down and opened it up. Holly remembered back to med school when she did her mandatory rotation in the ER. She dug through the bag and found some bandage scissors.

 “Alright Detective,” She immediately started cutting off his shirt, “Lay still and deep breaths.”

Ford was panicking, running from entrance to entrance making sure they were all locked with the keys he found and barricaded with whatever he could move in front of them. He frantically moved from room to room making sure that no one was moving.

He looked at the bag of cell phones one of the desks. A lot of them kept ringing. They would ring repeatedly and mess with his head.

“Who else got shot?” Swarek asked as Holly ripped open his shirt the rest of the way.

Holly looked to Cruz for the answer, but she didn’t have it. Cruz shook her head, “I don’t know. I think it may have come from upstairs.” Cruz peeked over the tops of the tables, “I can’t see from here.”

Holly moved closer to the wound. She could see the bullet sticking out from inside Swarek’s flesh, “This is going to hurt.” Holly looked behind her, “Is there a towel or something he can bite down on?”

Cruz looked around and saw a sweatshirt on one of the tables. She grabbed it and scrambled back to Swarek with it, hoping that Ford didn’t see her. While he was searching the rest of the precinct after shooting Swarek, she and Holly had dragged Swarek into the parade room. Keeping Swarek quiet was imperative. Cruz knew that Ford would probably kill her on sight.

Holly did the best she could with what she had. She taped gauze around his wound and then took a deep breath, “We have to get him out of here.”

Cruz shook her head, “If you try to get out, he’ll shoot you.”

Holly wiped her bloody hands off on Swarek’s ripped and bloody shirt. She looked at Cruz, “Do you have a phone or radio?”

Cruz shook her head.

Swarek rolled over onto his side and pulled a cracked phone out of his back pocket. He handed it to Holly. Holly immediate called the first name she recognized and pressed send. Cruz kept watch.

“Sam, where are you?” Andy answered her phone.

“It’s not Sam,” Holly replied, “It’s Holly Stewart. We’re inside the parade room. Sam’s hurt. He needs a hospital,” She looked around talking in hushed tones.

“Okay. Hold on,” Andy said and put her phone on speaker.

“Dr. Stewart,” a man’s voice said, “This is Sergeant Best. Where are you located?”

“In the parade room,” Holly kept watching Cruz, waiting for her signal, “There are other people here, we just don’t know where they are. There was another shot, someone else might be hurt, but I don’t know where. Detective Swarek needs to go to a hospital.”

“Is Ford the only shooter?” Best asked.

Holly whispered the question to Swarek who nodded.

“Yes,” Holly whispered into the phone.

Best asked where Ford was and Holly asked Cruz, but she had no idea. “We don’t know,” Holly answered.

“He’s coming,” Cruz whispered frantically. She scrambled to hide under a table out of sight. She pulled a table  Holly slid the phone on the floor to the opposite side of the room and pushed Swarek back against the floor. She whispered to him, “You’re dead.”

Swarek closed his eyes and pretended to be dead as the door burst open. Holly ducked her head and pulled her knees to her chest.

“Are you a cop?” Ford demanded.

Holly slowly looked up at him and saw the gun pointed at her. She shook her head, mutely. He looked her over, believing her because she didn’t look like a cop. “Why are you here?”

“I was bringing a file over. I-I’m a forensic pathologist,” Holly explained as calmly as she could, “I work in the morgue.”

Ford’s forehead wrinkled, “That’s weird.”

“I’ve been told,” Holly answered, trying to bite her sharp tongue.

 “C’mon,” Ford grabbed Holly’s sleeve and pulled her up. He pulled her out of the room and sat her down in one of the chairs at a desk in the middle of the bullpen. He handcuffed her hands in front of her and pushed the chair in at the desk.

Ford started pacing around. “Where’s that cop?”

“Which cop?” Holly asked, slowly trying to draw out the dialogue.

“The one that was following me,” he stated, looking around, “Cruz. I can’t find her.”

Holly looked down and shook her head, “I don’t know anything. I just work in the morgue.”

Ford saw a flash of light and yanked Holly up again, this time using her as a shield against the swarm of SWAT officers coming in, followed by a few uniformed officers.

Holly closed her eyes, hoping that this was all some kind of terrible dream as she felt the warm barrel of the gun press to her temple.

“Let her go, Ford,” Best kept his gun trained on Ford, “There’s no way out of this for you.”

Holly opened her eyes against the bright flashlights pointed at her and Ford. She hoped that Gail wasn’t present. She didn’t want her to get hurt. She kept scanning people in front of her when she was met with an icy blue gaze peeking out of a balaclava. She saw the blue eyes water up and shook her head, trying to get Gail to stop looking or to leave entirely.

She couldn’t hear or see anything, but Gail. She held Gail’s eyes until she was yanked to the side. Holly stumbled and Ford lost his grip on her. She realized that she was free and started running for the officers. Ford raised his gun and took one last shot before bullets from at least ten different guns riddled his chest.

“Holly!” Gail shrieked, yanking off her balaclava and running to Holly who had fallen from the force of the bullet. Her head hit a desk as she fell and she was bleeding from a gunshot wound somewhere Gail couldn’t pinpoint.

Holly tried to stay awake. She tried to fight everything to stay awake. She could hear her name being yelled, but everything around her went black.


	2. Chapter 2

Andy looked over Swarek’s sleeping body at the bed across the room. Gail hadn’t move since Holly had been brought in. Holly’s head was bandaged and her injured arm was covered and in a sling, but she hadn’t moved either. The doctors said something about brain swelling and she would wake up when she was ready.

Cruz walked in with a tray of coffee. She stopped by Andy first, offering her a cup. Andy took it and leaned back in her chair. Cruz turned her gaze to Gail and Holly. Gail had one of Holly’s hands between her own. She pressed their joined hands to her forehead.

“She was at the wrong place at the wrong time,” Andy assured Cruz, seeing how devastated her fellow officer was- her former fellow officer.

Cruz shook her head, “She was at the wrong place at the right time. She saved mine and Sam’s lives.”

Marlo slowly walked over to Gail. She reached over and touched Gail’s shoulder. Gail looked up and saw who it was, then lowered her head again. “Go away. I don’t want to look at you.”

“Gail, I-,” Marlo started, but Gail lifted her head again.

“Go. Away.” Gail snapped. “You’re the reason Sam got shot, you’re the reason Oliver was kidnapped, and you’re the reason Holly, who has absolutely no connection to anything Ford has done, is in this hospital bed with a gunshot wound and a gash in her head. She’s in a coma _because of you_.”

Cruz looked down and knew that Gail was right. If she hadn’t have gone off her medication, if she hadn’t had that manic episode, none of this would have happened. She put the coffee she got for Gail on the food tray next to Holly’s bed. Then Cruz swallowed, “She was a hero. She saved me and she saved Swarek. She kept her head,” She paused, then added quietly, “She was a hero.”

With that, Cruz left the room to sit her silent vigil out in the hallway where she had been praying that Sam, Chloe, and Holly were going to be okay. She wanted to be with Sam, but she just couldn’t face Gail.

Andy wanted to say something to defend Marlo but she knew it would only upset Gail more. She knew Gail was scared and angry. She didn’t want to provoke or upset her any more.

“Is that coffee?” Swarek asked the second he woke up. It was almost seven in the morning when he woke up from a pain-killer induced hibernation.

Andy chuckled, relieved that Sam was okay. It wasn’t like they were unsure that he’d wake up. She just always worried, “Yeah. I don’t think you’re allowed to have any though.”

Swarek leaned back in bed and stretched the half of his torso that didn’t have a hole in it. “Where’s the good doctor? I need to thank her for her work.”

Andy nodded over to where Gail and Holly were, “Ford used her as a shield and cuffed her. She tried to get away from him and before everyone fired on Ford, he shot her in the arm. He made her fall and hit her head on a desk.”

Swarek sat up in the bed and winced. He pressed his hand to the new dressing on his wound. “Is she gonna be alright?”

Andy looked over at Gail who was in more emotional turmoil than Andy had ever seen her. “I hope so.”

Nash walked in a few minutes later. She headed straight for Andy and Swarek who were talking. “Hey. I’ve been running between hospital rooms.” She cleared her throat, “Oliver is fine and hungry, Chloe is…exactly the same. They’re waiting to see if the clot will dissipate on its own. I’m going to go get breakfast for everyone. What do you guys want?”

“Coffee and donuts,” Swarek answered, scratching his chest like he had just woken up on a Sunday morning and didn’t plan to get out of bed.

Andy grinned, knowing that he was definitely alright, “No coffee.”

“Espresso and donuts,” Swarek amended.

Andy laughed and looked over at Traci, “Why aren’t you back to work?”

“Everyone who fired at Ford has to wait to be back on active duty until they figure out which one of you guys killed him and Frank told me to take time off to be with you. Dex is taking Leo to school so I’ll be here all day if you guys need me.” Nash shrugged. “Since our forensic pathologist is unconscious, there’s a guy coming in from Ottowa, but I heard he’s old so it’ll be a while.” Nash looked over at the forensic pathologist she was referring to, “Is she gonna be okay?”

“Yes, she’s going to be fine,” Gail said exasperatedly, not lifting her head from its rest against Holly’s hand, “I’m right here. I can hear everything you say. She’s just going to wake up when she’s ready.”

It was a little while later when Marlo walked back in. She was carrying a small vase of flowers. She didn’t say anything. She just set them on the table at the end of Holly’s bed. Then she walked out of the room. Ten minutes later, Dov walked in with flowers, placing them on the same table. He gave Gail a hug and then told her he was going back to Chloe.

“Thanks, Dov,” Gail told him.

He nodded and left.

Nash came back with Andy and Swarek’s food since Gail refused to eat. She also added a bouquet of flowers to the one’s on Holly’s table. She paused next to Gail’s chair. Gail slowly stood up, not letting go of Holly’s hand and hugged Traci with one arm. Traci squeezed Gail tightly. “I’m so sorry.”

Gail pulled away when she could feel the sting of tears in her eyes. She didn’t want to cry. She always felt that when she started crying, it was a sign that she had lost and she was determined not to lose this time because there was too much at stake.

More flowers came. Nick, Frank and Noelle, Steve, some people from the forensics labs all brought flowers. Steve sat down in the chair in the corner and just sat there with his sister, until he fell asleep. It had been a long, long night for everyone and sitting in that chair was the first time he’d gotten a rest.

More and more people hugged Gail and told them they were sorry. They told her Holly was a hero and that she was so brave. Eventually, Gail just couldn’t feel any of it anymore. She was just saturated with an overwhelming feeling of sadness. The last time she talked to Holly, she blew her off. She wouldn’t show her any kind of affection in front of people because she was scared of what they might say and now she didn’t have Holly. She didn’t get to apologize or explain. And even after she blew her off, Holly still went to the station to make sure she was okay.

The thought made tears trickle down Gail’s face. She was so ashamed of how she acted. She’d spent her whole life trying to do the right thing and be who everyone wanted her to be – live up to her family name- that she when she finally found herself, she couldn’t let it happen. She panicked and shut it down.

“I’m sorry,” Gail whispered to Holly. “I’m so sorry.”

Gail looked at Holly’s glasses on the bed next to her hand. She didn’t remember who, but one of the medical staff shoved them at her when they took Holly away. Gail remembered standing in the middle of the emergency room, staring at the glasses. She became irrationally obsessed with a smudge on the glasses and cleaned them as best she could. Everything just felt so out of control, Holly was in surgery or something, and Gail was just standing there in the middle of the Emergency Room, trying to clean Holly’s glasses.

It was so stupid when she thought about it. She should have been asking questions and telling the doctors what happened to her, but she just stood there, cleaning Holly’s glasses. Gail picked up the glasses off of the bed. She remembered Holly’s sharp eyes behind them, caring and dazzlingly intelligent. Gail smiled a little at the way that Holly used to put them up with the back of her hand on the bottom edge of the glasses.

She placed the glasses back onto the bed next to her hand that was holding Holly’s. She ran her thumb over the back of Holly’s hand and apologized again, like she could never say it too much.

Nick stepped in and added to the massive collection of flowers. He pulled a chair up next to Gail’s and sat down. He exchanged an understanding nod with Andy who knew that Gail needed him more than Andy did right then. “When was the last time you left?”

Gail shook her head, looking over Holly’s sleeping face, “I haven’t.”

“You need to get outside. Take a walk,” Nick told her, “At least go to the bathroom or change clothes.”

“My apartment is too far,” Gail shook her head, “I can’t.”

“If I go get you something to wear, will you take a walk? Just five minutes. Get some air, get some coffee, something to eat?” he asked.

Gail nodded slowly. She didn’t want to leave Holly, but she was getting weak from not eating and she really needed to pee.

So when Nick returned with her clothes and her duffle bag, Gail changed. She put her uniform and belt into the bag, then asked Nick to take it back to the precinct when she got back. He agreed to do it and to sit with Holly until she got back.  

Gail ran across the street to a deli and got a sandwich to go. It was colder outside than she remembered it. She looked at her dying phone to see what time it was then realized that she didn’t know what day it was. Everything just kind of melded together in the hospital. She kept looking at the hospital while she was in the deli like Holly’s vital signs were being broadcast on the side and it would tell her that Holly was still stable. She barely registered the guy behind the counter handing her the food.

As she was leaving the deli, she saw a florist next door. She felt like the needed to get Holly something. That’s what people did when someone was in the hospital, she rationalized to herself. However as she was walking into the florist shop, she spotted something that Holly would really want instead of flowers that would be dead in a week. Sure normal people got flowers when they were in the hospital, but normal wasn’t really Holly or Gail’s style.

She returned to the hospital with her sandwich and two books. She set the books down onto the flower table, content with knowing that she was the one who knew Holly best of all. Holly would think that flowers were a nice gesture, but she would love the books. She would read the books and become immersed in them. She would keep the books forever.

Nick hugged Gail before leaving with her bag. She set the sandwich down on the food tray next to the cold coffee Cruz brought that she hadn’t touched.

Gail rubbed her eyes. She was tired, but she wanted to be awake when Holly woke up. She ate her sandwich, hoping that the action would keep her awake.

Of course after she ate it, she got more tired. Nick came back to sit with her and she laid her head down on the bed, trying not to fall asleep. She kept holding Holly’s hand, keeping it close to her. Eventually she lost her fight against sleep. 


	3. Chapter 3

When Gail awoke, she had a horrible headache. Her neck was stiff and she knew that when she sat up her back would be killing her. She didn’t want to move her head, but she felt fingers softly stroking her cheek. That jerked her awake. She sat up quickly despite her headache and found that Holly was awake. Holly was also reading one of the books that Gail bought her.

Holly put the book down and smiled, “Hey.”

“Hey,” Gail scooted her chair forward, “You’re awake. Why didn’t you wake me up?”

“Nick told me that you haven’t slept in over thirty hours,” Holly answered. “I couldn’t.”

Gail felt tears in her eyes, “You’re okay.”

Holly nodded, reaching forward to wipe the tears from Gail’s face. “I’m fine.”

Gail shot out of her chair, sending it tipping backwards and clattering to the ground. She pressed her lips hard against Holly’s, not even thinking about who was watching. She was just glad that Holly was okay. She was glad that she talking and smiling and alive.

Gail didn’t want to stop kissing Holly. She was trying to apologize through the kiss. She was trying to convey joy that she was okay, trying to convey that she was sorry. She was so, so sorry.

Before she knew it the words were spilling out of her mouth, “I’m so sorry that I blew you off. I should have just hugged your or kissed you – held your hand. I like kissing you. I’m not ashamed of you or me. I really care about you and when I heard what happened, I-I-I freaked out. I put that hood on so that the guys wouldn’t recognize me and let me in on the raid. Then, I saw you get shot. I saw you fall and hit your head.” Gail’s voice started shaking.

Holly dropped the book in her lap. She couldn’t move her arm that was in the sling, but she could move the other one. She touched Gail’s face. “I’m okay now though. You’re okay and I’m okay.”

“Are we okay?” Gail asked, swallowing unsurely.

Holly nodded, “Of course.” She pulled Gail in for another kiss.

Applause sounded in the room. Swarek started it, then Andy, Traci, Steve, and Nick joined in.

Holly laughed, breaking the kiss. Gail rolled her eyes and pulled away. She turned to the group, “Show’s over.” She stood up and pulled the curtain closed around Holly’s bed and kicked Nick out.

Gail dropped her head and smiled. Then she laughed. She stood up and kissed Holly again. Then she sat down on the bed next to her, “I’m so glad you’re okay.”

“I’m glad you’re okay too,” Holly confessed, “I was worried.”

“You were worried?” Gail shook her head, “You got shot.”

Holly shrugged, “You could have been shot.” Holly reached up and touched her head. She could feel the gauze, “They didn’t shave my hair anywhere did they?”

Gail chuckled, “No. It was your forehead.”

“I got lucky,” Holly stated. “The hardest part of the skull.”

Gail sat back in her chair, “Knowing you, you knew you were going to hit your head and aimed for there.”

“Maybe,” Holly grinned. She looked down at the bruises on her wrists from the handcuffs. Then she examined her arm without moving the sling too much, “Can you go grab a doctor? I’d like to go home.”

Gail nodded, “Totally.” She stood up and moved the curtain out of the way so she could step into the hallway. She flagged down Holly’s doctor.

After a quick examination, an explanation that Holly was a doctor, and Gail swearing to not leave Holly’s side of for the next twenty-four hours, Holly was released. Swarek asked if Holly could talk to the doctor for him too. Holly did and Swarek was released as well with all the same promises. Andy and Marlo helped Swarek out of the hospital and Nick walked Gail and Holly to Gail’s car.

Holly took the books that Gail got her and sent the flowers to someone who would like them better when she woke up.

Dov looked up when the door opened to Chloe’s room. Chris and Traci walked in with armfuls of flowers.

“What is this?” Dov asked as the flowers were added to the flowers that Chloe already had.

“Holly sent them over,” Chris patted Dov’s shoulder, “She thought that Chloe would like flowers more than she does.”

Dov nodded slowly, turning back to his unconscious girlfriend, “Chloe loves flowers.”

At Holly’s apartment, Gail was laying on half the couch, watching Holly read in the opposite corner of the couch. They were sharing a light blue blanket. Gail was leaning back against the arm rest, warming up in front of the corner fireplace.

“We haven’t gone on a date,” Gail blurted out.

Holly looked up from her book, pushing her glasses up onto the top of her head. “What?”

“We haven’t actually gone on a date,” Gail told her. “We should go on a date.”

“Are you asking me out?” Holly asked with a coy grin.

Gail blushed, “Yeah. I am.”

“Of course,” Holly nodded. “Although I don’t suggest the batting cages because we’ll end up in the hospital again.”

“One time,” Gail huffed and flopped back on the arm of the couch, “I throw the bat one time and I never live it down.”

“Not as long as I’m alive,” Holly laughed.

“You better be alive for a long, long time,” Gail threatened.

Holly nodded. “Right back at you.”

Gail moved closer to Holly and took her hand, “I’m not good at this.”

“Good at what?” Holly asked.

“Relationships,” Gail answered, “Being myself and opening up to people. I just, I care about you and I just wanted you to know before we get any kind of serious.”

Holly took a moment. She put her glasses back on. She sucked in her bottom lip and nodded, “I know that about you. I knew that about you the first time I met you. I like that you’re not an open book. I like finding out things about you and I’m okay finding all those things out in your time.”

“Why are you so patient with me?” Gail asked softly.

“I know you’re worth it,” Holly answered without hesitation.

Gail looked down, trying to regroup. She looked back up at Holly. She wanted to tell Holly that no one had ever made her feel that comfortable or that…worth it. She looked earnestly back at Holly. “Thank you.”

Holly didn’t say anything. She just smiled and gave Gail’s hand a gentle squeeze.

“Can I take you out to dinner?” Gail asked, moving to lean on the back of the couch with her shoulder.

Holly nodded, “Sure.”

“Tonight?” Gail clarified.

Holly blinked, “It will be hard to do my hair with this bandage on my head.”

“I can draw tribal designs on it with a sharpie,” Gail offered with bright eyes.

Holly just quirked an eyebrow.

“Is that a no?” Gail asked.

Holly cracked a smile, “It’s definitely a no.”

Gail smiled, “I didn’t mean anywhere fancy. We can go get hot dogs and sit in the park or we can eat in the hospital cafeteria where there are at least a dozen people all bandaged up.”

Holly shrugged, “Actually, let’s go somewhere nice. I’m sure I can use my bangs to cover up the stitches. I don’t need the bandage anymore.”

“Are you sure?” Gail asked, “We don’t have to. We can wait.”

Holly nodded. “I am totally sure. I just got shot. I’m supposed to be all seize the moment right?”

“How about you grab some clothes and we go get ready at my place?” Gail asked, starting to get excited.

Holly agreed. After packing up some of her clothes one handed, she got in the car with Gail.

As they drove, Holly’s phone rang. She frowned at the number, “Hello?.. Yes, Dr. Yeardly. I understand…. You know what, don’t worry about it. I’ll take care of it…uh-huh…you too.” Then she hung up.

Gail noticed something was amiss so she asked, “Who was that?”

“That was the pathologist that they called in from Ottawa,” Holly tapped her phone on her leg. “He’s not going to be able to make it. There was a gang fight in Ottawa so they want me to do the autopsy on Ford.”

“They can’t make you do that,” Gail protested.

Holly shrugged, “There are multiple bullets in him and there are at least half a dozen cops that took a shot who can’t work until he gets autopsied. You probably shot him too.”

“Okay so do you want to go now?” Gail asked. She couldn’t actually remember if she shot or not. She just surrendered her gun immediately to Frank and left in the ambulance with Holly.

Holly shook her head, “No, no. I have a date.”

“Should you even be doing the autopsy?” Gail stopped at a red light and looked over at Holly, “He did shoot you.”

Holly smirked, “What am I going to do? Kill him again?”

“Right,” Gail nodded, seeing Holly’s point, and kept making her way toward her apartment.

When she walked in, she found the apartment empty. Gail didn’t expect Dov or Chris to be there anyway. They were probably both still at the hospital. Gail decided to go check on them before she went to bed tonight. She got lucky. Her person only got grazed by a bullet. Dov’s took one to the neck.

Gail took a deep breath and watched Holly look around. Gail put her hand on the back of the couch and ran a nail over the smooth fabric. Holly finally looked to Gail who has stopped moving. She didn’t say anything. She just stood there waiting for Gail to speak.

The officer finally looked up and met her eyes, “I’m just really glad you’re okay.”

“Are you sure you’re feeling up to going out?” Holly asked softly stepping over to Gail. She touched Gail’s upper arm and kissed the side of her head.

“I thought I was,” Gail sighed and looked around.

Holly smiled softly at Gail. She took the keys out of Gail’s hand, “C’mon.” She took Gail’s hand, dragging her out of the apartment.

Gail just sat quietly while Holly drove her. When they stopped at the hospital, Gail looked thankfully over at Holly. Gail wasn’t great with emotions or talking about them, but Holly didn’t need her to talk.

Gail’s phone rang when she walked back inside. It was Steve. She answered and found that he was just checking on her. He told her that their parents wanted to see her as soon as she could. She told Steve not to count on it. Then she told Steve that if their parents wanted to talk to her, that they could call her themselves. Gail usually wasn’t the curt with her brother, but was really on edge and about to go back into the hospital and check on Chloe. She wasn’t particularly fond of Chloe, but she was covertly fond of Dov and who was very fond of Chloe.

Gail took Holly’s hand as they walked into the hospital. They went up the elevator and down the corridor to Chloe’s room. They stopped outside the room and Gail looked in the window. Dov was sitting at the foot of the bed. It looked like he was praying. She didn’t want to interrupt him. She knew he wasn’t a terribly religious person, but neither was she and Gail prayed to every deity she could think of, maybe even making some up, that Holly would be okay.

“He needs you,” Holly told Gail softly, “He needs his friends right now. I don’t really know him so I think I’m going to go to the morgue and start the autopsy so everyone can get back on duty.”

Gail wasn’t sure that she wanted Holly to leave. Gail furrowed her eyebrows, “I’m supposed to stay with you for the next twenty four hours.”

“My office is three blocks away,” Holly kissed Gail’s cheek. “You can call me whenever you want and I’ll answer. If I don’t, it’ll take you two minutes to get there.”

Gail nodded. She knew it was the best solution for all involved. “Thank you.”

Holly just squeezed Gail’s hand and then stepped out.

When Gail walked into the room, Dov looked up. He moved his eyes back at Chloe, “I heard Holly is okay.”

Gail nodded, “She went back to the morgue to autopsy Ford, see which bullet killed him.” She pulled up a chair next to Dov and sat down.

“I’m glad she’s okay,” Dov told Gail honestly.

Gail thanked him and then reached over and took Dov’s hand, “Chloe is going to be okay too.”

Dov looked across Chloe’s still body with tired, hopeless eyes, “I hope so.”


	4. Chapter 4

Gail called Holly every half hour for the next three hours. She was paranoid that Holly was going to pass out or something and she wouldn’t know about it. Holly would continue pulling bullets out of Ford as she assured Gail that she was okay. Luckily, her dominant arm wasn’t injured so it didn’t slow down the autopsy much.

When the autopsy was done, Holly finished inputting all of the data and matching the bullets to the guns. As soon as Holly finished comparing bullets with the other lab techs, she saw that out of the eight officers that said they fired, only seven of them actually fired and only six of them actually hit Ford. Of the twelve bullets that left the guns, nine of them hit Ford, but one person killed him before all the rest. It was a bullet from a gun that wasn’t reported. It hit Ford at a weird angle as well. Based on where the incoming officers were and the other bullet wounds, this person was standing to Ford’s right side, off toward the holding cells, striking him in the right temple.

“I’m glad to see that you’re okay,” Frank said when Holly walked into his office with her report. She had carefully avoided the parade room and the main bullpen when she walked to his office because she was nervous how she would react. Right now she was putting up a stone front, a façade for Gail, but she wasn’t sure she could keep it up in there.

Holly nodded, “I just finished the autopsy and the ballistics.” She handed him the report.

“Who all shot him?” Frank asked, leaning back in his chair and opening the file.

“McNally, Peck, Collins, and three SWAT officers Kyle, Glass, and Baker. Officer Rhodes from 21 shot, but missed, striking the wall behind Ford.” Holly repeated mechanically the way she did when she was testifying in court.

“Peck brother or sister?” he asked, scanning the file.

“Sister,” Holly clarified.

He nodded, “Which one killed him?”

“None of them,” Holly put her hands in her pockets. “There was a shot from the holding cell corridor. It wasn’t from a handgun either. It was a hunting rifle.” Holly looked away and then looked back at Frank, “It matched the bullet that shot Officer McNally in the park.”

“Son of a bitch,” Frank closed the file and slapped it on his desk. He leaned back in his chair and looked at the ceiling for a while. Then he looked back at Holly, “Who else knows about this?”

“No one,” Holly answered, “I did the comparisons myself on the hunch after the techs left.”

“Good,” Frank nodded then instructed, “No one else knows about this.”

Holly nodded.

“Do you have time to stay here?” Frank asked, rubbing his already tired eyes.

Holly nodded again.

Frank made a call to Traci Nash. “Nash,” was how she answered.

“I need you to come in,” Frank told her. “Call Peck, Collins, Diaz, and McNally and meet me in my office. Do not tell anyone else about what you’re doing.”

“What exactly are we doing sir?” Nash asked.

“I’ll tell you when you get here,” Frank stated and then hung up. He exhaled and looked at Holly, “You need an officer with you at all times.”

“Wh-why?” Holly stuttered, astounded by his sudden orders.

“This has got to be Kevin Ford’s brother and you got away from them once,” Frank stated. “I don’t think they’re smart enough to figure out that you figured this out.” Frank tapped the folder with his finger, “But just in case okay? I’ll assign an officer to you. I’m sure he’ll continue the assault on 15 Division that his brother started and now you’re one of us. One of us that got away.”

Holly didn’t see how she could be a target in any way, but of course she didn’t think she would be shot in the middle of a police station either. Holly touched the sling on her arm and adjusted it minutely, as she thought about what happened. She looked out the window of the office and saw the taped off area where Ford fell. She saw the desk where she hit her head. There was an evidence marker resting on the corner. It was probably her blood or hair on the desk. Part of her was evidence. She swallowed and forced her attention back into the room.

Holly stayed in Frank’s office, per his request while all of his officers came in. Noelle came in first. Noelle told Holly that she was glad that she was okay. Holly thanked her and moved back to let the officers get to work. Holly stayed near the windows, out of the way and if she kept her back to it, she couldn’t see the crime scene.

She got a text from Gail that she was being called into work and that she’d check on her after the briefing. Holly didn’t think that she needed to reply to Gail who would be arriving within minutes. The officers started arriving at the same time. Andy picked up Gail and Nick on her way in. Chris and Traci were close behind.

When Gail walked in, she spotted Holly and frowned. She looked from Holly to Frank, “What’s going on?”

Frank stood up and walked around his desk. He sat on the front of it and looked at the officers in front of him. He handed Noelle Holly’s report before explaining who he thought actually killed Ford and how his brother was probably still going to be after them.

“What kind of guy shoots his own brother?” Traci asked.

Noelle looked over the file, “The kind of guy who will kill an officer without blinking. He probably thought it brother would rat him out. It might have been his plan all along. I’m not sure Kevin Ford could have pulled all of this off without help.”

“What about Dr. Stewart?” Andy asked, glancing over at the doctor, “He might see her as one of us now.”

Frank nodded, “I figured that. That is why there will be an officer with her at all times. There will be a surveillance detail outside of her apartment.”

“I-I don’t need that,” Holly shook her head, standing up straight from her lean on the wall.

Best inhaled through his nose, “This is a dangerous man. I believe that it would be better to be safe than sorry.”

“Her apartment’s parking structure is secured with access cards and you need a key to get to the elevator up to the apartment,” Gail spoke up and after her detailed instruction on how to get into Holly’s apartment everyone was starting to wonder how many times Gail had been there. “If a surveillance detail would make her uncomfortable, it wouldn’t totally be necessary. Nick and I can stay with her at night.”

“Collins?” Frank asked, looking over at the other officer.

Nick nodded, “Absolutely, sir.”

“Nash, McNally, Peck, and Diaz,” Frank crossed his arms, “I want this entire building swept for that rifle. Noelle, call Callaghan and you two go over the surveillance cameras in the entire station.”

“What about me, sir?” Nick asked.

“Stay with Dr. Stewart,” Frank instructed, “Accompany her to the morgue if she needs to go to work. After the sweep of the station, Peck will pick you up in a cruiser. You can park it on the street so that it’s visible. That may be enough to scare Ford number two away.”

Holly was a little upset that she was getting no say in her own protection, but she knew that this wasn’t really her area of expertise. She looked over at Gail who was looking right at her, asking her a silent question. Holly nodded. She would stay at the station until Gail was done. Technically her duties at the morgue were didn’t resume until she was ready to go back to work and she had been told by higher ups that she should probably take some time off after what happened.

Holly took a novel out of her bag and sat down at one of the empty detectives’ desks while Nick caught up on some paperwork at the desk behind her. Holly smelt Gail’s perfume waft by and when she looked up there was a tea on the desk. Holly smiled and looked behind her to see Gail walking away, not looking back, but knowing that Gail was trying to take care of her while doing her job.

The search took two hours and only turned up a bullet casing for a rifle that McNally found until the desk in the intake room. Holly confirmed that it was probably the same caliber of the one that was used to shoot Ford, Andy’s jacket, and Chloe, so it was safe to assume that it belonged to the second Ford brother. Going over the surveillance footage was going to take longer because of all the cameras and all angles.

It was getting late when Holly and Gail got into the police car that Nick was driving. They stopped at his apartment to get some clothes for him.

Gail kept a diligent eye out, watching every shadow move around them in Nick’s quiet neighborhood.

“It smells back here,” Holly looked around at the backseat of the squad care both curious and disgusted by what the smell could be.

Gail turned around in her seat, “You complain about that smell more than the guy to puked back there did.”

“Oh my god,” Holly grimaced. “Why do I have to sit back here?”

Gail put her hand on the weapon in the rack next to her, “Because you’re not trained with the shotgun.”

Holly was trying to be some sort of annoyed with Gail, but she was failing. She smiled and shook her head. She swatted at the cage between her and Gail. Gail grinned knowing that Holly wasn’t really mad and wasn’t even good at pretending to be mad.

Nick returned with a duffle bag and a sleeping bag that he put into the trunk. When he opened the door, Gail asked Holly earnestly, “Do you want to switch seats?”

Holly shook her head, “No I’m fine.” She smiled at Gail’s offer. Then she added, “Besides, I’m not trained with the shotgun.”

Gail grinned and turned back around. Nick put the car into drive. Gail gave him directions to Holly’s apartment and they arrived in no time. Gail and Nick were cautious, looking down the street and up at all the balconies, searching for a gun. Just as a precaution, they rushed Holly inside the lobby.

Holly had to use her electronic key to get into the building and then her apartment key for the elevator. When she reached her floor, Gail led the way out. Holly thought the entire thing had been blown out of proportion, but Gail was adamant about the extra security and Holly would never complain about spending time with Gail.

As they walked to the door, Holly said, “I’m afraid I don’t have a guest room.”

“It’s fine,” Gail quickly said, “Nick can sleep downstairs. I’ll bunk with you.”

Holly looked over her shoulder at Gail and raised her eyebrows. Gail just played it off like she didn’t just say that they’d sleep in the same bed.

Holly unlocked her apartment which was swept by the two officers before she was allowed to go inside. Nick went upstairs, his gun drawn. Gail looked over the downstairs from the open living and dining area to the large kitchen. She checked combined utility room and pantry off of the kitchen. Then she went back to the living room. She loved it. There was something about it that was so Holly. It was partially the overflowing bookcase built in under the stairs next to the corner fireplace and partially the comfy sofa, in front of a solid wooden coffee table cluttered with books and files, with a dedicated blanket draped over the back. Gail also loved the entire wall that was a window behind the exposed stairs. She knew there was a switch somewhere that unfrosted the glass so that she could see outside, but for the moment, the frosted glass washed the room in a warm light.

“Clear,” Nick called.

Gail sputtered out, “Clear.” She had been too busy admiring the apartment that she had been to before to follow protocol.

“Does that mean I can come in?” Holly poked her head in the door.

“Yeah,” Gail turned around and holstered her gun. She had to admit that she liked carrying around just her gun and handcuffs on her belt. Maybe she would actually try to make it to detective someday.

Holly closed and locked the door as Nick came down the stairs. He picked up his sleeping bag from where he set it by the front door and looked around for somewhere to roll it out. “This is a really nice place.”

“Thank you,” Holly said, offhandedly sorting through the mail.

“If you get anything weird, don’t open it,” Gail hovered over Holly and watched the names on the mail for anything suspicious.

“Nothing weird,” Holly assured Gail and dropped her mail on the counter under the pass-through to the kitchen. She looked at Nick who was unrolling his sleeping bag. Then he took his gun holster off of his belt and placed it on the coffee table next to him. “The couch folds out if you want to sleep on that instead.”

“I don’t want to be any trouble,” Nick looked up at her.

“It’s no trouble,” Holly scooted the coffee table to the side with her leg and then pulled out the hideaway bed with one hand.

“Thank you,” Nick smiled. He moved his sleeping bag up onto the bed. The he walked to the front door to make sure it was locked and then walked to the window to see if he could look out. Gail remembered where the switch was and flipped it so that the windows became clear.

“That’s cool,” Nick looked outside. He consulted Gail, “But we should probably keep it so that no one can see in.”

Gail agreed and flipped the switch again. The glass immediately frosted again.

Holly bent down and picked up Gail’s bag, “I’ll just take this to my bedroom.”

“No,” Gail walked over to her and took the bag, “I can carry my own stuff.”

Holly put her hand that wasn’t in a sling up in the air, “Fine.”

Gail tried to squash a smile and lead the way up the stairs. “I’ve never seen upstairs,” Gail looked around at the lilac painted wall that paired with the glass wall to house the stairs, “I’m disappointed. It’s not as morbid as I imagined.”

Holly just smirked and shook her head. “The guy I hired to paint the walls black didn’t show up.” There was a short hallway with two doors. One was obviously the door for the bedroom so Gail went to the last door and peeked in. It was an office. There were even more books in large bookshelves around a small desk. The desk was covered in stacks of paper and books.

Holly had waited for Gail at her bedroom door. She gestured for Gail to go in first. Gail stepped inside and took in the entirety of the bedroom. “This is more like it.”

The far wall of the bedroom was painted a pale grey. The black painted wood of her sleek four-poster bed contrasted beautifully against it with the rich deep purple bedspread hanging off of the stark white sheets. The pillows were in no particular pattern scattered all over the bed.

There were there blouses hanging on the bar running over the bed, between the posts. Holly quickly took them down and hung them in her closet.

“I’m glad you like it,” Holly closed the closet door, “I spent forever deciding on the colors.” Holly started moving the pillows to the head of the bed.

“Do you have night terrors or something?” Gail asked slowly walked to the bed, “Your bed is a mess.”

Holly smirked, “I do not have night terrors, just trouble getting out of bed in the morning.”

Gail sat down on the bed and sighed. Then she fell back on it. Gail moaned, “I can see why. I love your bed.” Gail crawled up the bed and grabbed a pillow, “I want to take your bed out for drinks and make stupid decisions with it.” Gail pulled the blanket over her, “I want your bed to be a one night stand that I keep having.”

Holly chuckled, “You have fun with the bed. I will go order dinner. Thai okay with you?”

“I don’t know,” Gail peeked up at Holly from under the blanket, “Can I have your bed?”

“You can borrow my bed,” Holly picked up a pillow and dropped it on Gail’s head.

Holly walked down stairs to get the Thai menu and found Nick checking his gun.

“I’m going to order Thai food,” Holly told him as she walked into her kitchen. She could see him in the living room through the large pass through window between them. “Do you want something?”

“Yeah,” Nick nodded. “Gail knows what I like. Where is she?”

“She is upstairs rolling around in my bed and asking it to go out for drinks with her,” Holly picked up the menu out of one of her drawers and made her way upstairs.

“Nick says that you know what he likes,” Holly took off her cardigan and hung it up in her closet. It was difficult with one hand and the sling, but she managed. Then she grabbed a sweatshirt and pulled it on.

“He likes Pad Thai, but he picks out the peanuts,” Gail shook her head. “It’s weird.”

“You and Nick are close?” Holly asked, picking up her phone from the nightstand.

“We used to be engaged,” Gail held her hand out, “Let me order. You’re supposed to be resting.”

Holly smirked, “I think I can order food with my one good arm.”

Gail placed one pillow on top of another and looked up at Holly. “Then lay down with me.” She moved two pillows for Holly next to her stack. Holly lay down next to Gail and rolled toward Gail using her good arm.

“I have something important to tell you,” Gail took Holly’s face in her hands.

Holly got serious and nodded, “Of course.”

Gail couldn’t contain her smile, “I love your bed.”

Holly was a little disappointed that it wasn’t some kind of huge confession, but she was happy that Gail was happy. She loved that smile on her face. She had promised Gail that she was okay that Gail shared things and her time and Holly absolutely was okay with that. Like she told Gail, she was worth it.

Gail’s eyes traced Holly’s face. She swallowed nervously. “I’m not really comfortable a lot of places, you know?” Gail prompted, trying to clarify a little bit more.

Holly realized that it was a huge confession. Gail was comfortable in her apartment and comfortable in her bed. She was comfortable enough to be herself. She was comfortable with Holly.

Holly nodded, “My bed loves you too.”

Gail moved slowly forward and kissed Holly. She kissed Holly slowly, savoring the moment - savoring the fact that Holly was awake and out of the hospital. 

She felt safe in Holly’s apartment, in Holly’s bed, and in Holly's kiss. She was glad that Holly was okay and glad that she was allowed to be one of the officers protecting Holly. Gail knew that she was going to make sure that Holly would stay safe no matter what.


	5. Chapter 5

After she rested her head back on her pillow and looked at Holly. She asked, “How’s your arm?”

Holly nodded, “Yeah. It’s fine. I probably need to check it after I order the food.”

“I’ll check it,” Gail offered. She regretted offering when she saw that the gunshot wound was still bleeding a little bit. Her hands were shaking as she cleaned the area. It upset her way more than it she thought it would. But this was like having Holly’s mortality thrown in her face. It showed her how close Holly came to being shot somewhere vital.

“Are you okay?” Holly asked, looked over at her arm. She had to take her shirt off so that Gail could get at her wound. She was standing in the bathroom and Gail was sitting on the edge of the bathtub so that she could get a good look at the wound.

“Just give me a minute,” Gail held the gauze in her latex gloved hands. She looked away from a moment then took a deep breath.

Holly smirked, “You have watched me do autopsies. How does this make you squeamish?”

“It’s not the blood or anything,” Gail put the gauze over the area and taped it off. “It’s that...it’s you.”

Holly pushed her glasses up her nose. She didn’t know what to say. She didn’t think it would affect Gail like this. She wanted to apologize and offer some kind of comforting words, but she didn’t have to think of something because the building security officer rang her to tell her that the food had arrived.

“I’ll go get it,” Holly offered picking up her shirt and shrugging it on, but Gail stopped her.

“No way,” Gail blocked Holly’s way out. “I’ll be right back.” Holly followed Gail all the way down the stairs as she buttoned her shirt. Nick automatically averted his eyes when he saw that Holly was buttoning her shirt.

“Are you sure?” Holly asked. “The security guard can just bring it up.”

“It’s fine. Besides, who is going to watch the front door if he leaves?” Gail quipped. She picked up Holly’s keys out of the bowl next to the door.

Holly continued her valiant protest. However, Gail got the drop on her and used Nick as a screen to get out the door before Holly could stop her.

Gail returned with the food and told Holly that the security officer checked her out. Holly started taking the food out of the bag, “It would be hypocritical of me to chastise him for checking you out.”

Nick laughed, “She’s got a point.”

Gail rolled her eyes, “I was cursed with these dazzling looks.”

As they ate, Nick asked Holly if she had a gaming console. Holly shook her head, “I’m not really good at video games.”

“Yeah, she does sports,” Gail made a face.

Holly smiled, knowing that Gail’s teasing wasn’t malicious.

Gail took a bite of her noodles, “A gaming console is the only thing that would make your bedroom better.”

“Let’s go get one,” Holly offered nonchalantly.

Nick looked at his watch, “It’s one a.m..”

Holly dropped her plastic fork in to the paper box the food came in, “I’m not sleeping anytime soon.”

“Me either,” Gail thought it over, “Let’s do it.”

There was an impromptu stop at an ice cream shop before they made it to the electronic store. Holly let Gail pick out the system, the controllers, and games. She just followed her around eating her ice cream. Nick stuck close to the door, but called a few suggestions for games when he thought of them.

When they got back to Holly’s apartment, they put up the fold out in the couch and the trio took to setting up the console. It wasn’t long before they were all running around a virtual field, shooting at each other. As his player was running away from Gail’s character, Nick got a call. Gail shot him when he reached for his phone. He respawned while he answered it. “Collins.”

“Hey,” Andy said, “How’s it going over there?”

“Great,” Nick replied, smashing the buttons on his controller, “We’re just playing some video games. How’s Swarek?”

“He’s sleeping,” Andy replied, “Marlo is here so I’m on my way home. I guess I won’t see you until tomorrow?”

Holly was frowning at the TV, “I think I’m stuck in the corner.” All she could see was brown on her part of the screen.

“I’ll help,” Gail said and a second later, Holly’s player was dead.

Holly pushed Gail, “You killed me!” Her character respawned in the middle of the map.

“You’re not stuck in the corner anymore, noob,” Gail grinned and bumped Holly’s shoulder.

“Yeah, Gail is being an assassin,” Nick answered Andy’s question, “It’s not even fair.”

“Tell Gail that if she needs to be relieved, I’ll come over,” Andy offered.

Nick relayed the message. Gail shook her head without taking her eyes off of the screen. She was chasing around Holly’s player. “I’m not leaving.”

“Stop it,” Holly whined, trying desperately to get away.

“She said that she’s not leaving,” Nick moved to a higher place on the map so that he could hopefully see the other players.

“If any of the other officers want to come over they can,” Holly mentioned offhandedly. “I get that it could be important for you all to be together in a time like this.”

“Just no one upstairs,” Gail warned.

Nick was a little confused by Gail’s warning, but he passed on the information to Andy who said she’d pass it on as well. She said that she’d be over after she went to see Dov and Chloe.

“You two suck. I wish Dov was here,” Gail said when the match was over and she was the landslide of a winner.

Holly leaned back on the couch, “Do you want to go see him?”

Gail picked up her phone, “It’s late.”

“I slept for twenty hours,” Holly retorted.

“That was a coma,” Gail tapped her phone on her leg. She sent Dov a text and asked how he was.

Nick hung up with Andy and put his phone on the coffee table, “Andy is going to be here in a few hours.” Nick looked at the women next to him, “Are we going to play again?”

Gail put her controller down and walked into the kitchen. She began searching the cabinets. Holly leaned on the doorway to the kitchen and watched for a moment before saying, “Vodka is in the freezer, scotch is in the cabinet over the toast oven, and there’s beer in the fridge.”

Gail leaned on the island in the middle of the kitchen. “I feel bad for Dov.”

“I know,” Holly nodded, understandingly. She stayed in her spot in the doorway, not wanting to crowd Gail.

Gail leaned on the counter, “I can’t be downstairs when Andy gets here.”

“You don’t have to be,” Holly offered, “I’m sure the bed is getting lonely after all the promises you made it.”

Gail smiled. She was not good at being intimate with people and she really wanted to try for Holly. Gail walked up to Holly and touched Holly’s hand. She wanted to hug Holly, but it was hard for her. Holly moved in, putting her unwounded arm around Gail. Gail just kind of folded into her, careful not to put pressure on Holly’s hurt arm.

Gail dropped her face in Holly’s neck. Holly rubbed Gail’s back. Gail closed her eyes and just allowed herself to feel what she was feeling. She didn’t feel the need to hide from Holly. She knew that she could hide from the world in Holly.

“It’ll be okay,” Holly whispered.

Gail took a deep breath and pulled away. She gave Holly a short kiss and pushed back a piece of Holly’s hair that was falling in her face. “I hope so.”

“Do you want to go to the hospital?” Holly asked.

“No. I need to stay here with you,” Gail tilted her head. She looked behind Holly to see Nick was already playing a new match without them.

Holly shook her head, “I’ll be fine here by myself. You take Nick and go to the hospital. You said it yourself that no one needs to watch my building.”

“Yeah…” Gail trailed off. “I said that, but there is a uniform that drives very slowly past here every half hour.”

Holly hadn’t noticed, but she couldn’t fault Gail for keeping it a secret. “I can go with you. I’ll go put on a sweater and we can go.”

Gail looked behind her and saw what time it was on the oven, “He’s probably asleep. We’ll stay here unless he texts me back.”

Holly nodded in agreement, “Okay. So…another match?”

“Do you enjoy getting owned?” Gail asked with a sly smirk.

“Well now that I know how to look around, I may have a chance,” Holly moved to the side so that Gail could lead the way to the couch.

“You wish,” Gail plopped down on the couch and picked up her controller.

Andy brought donuts with her when she arrived. Holly had to go down and get her because of the security of the building, but she swore to Gail that she wouldn’t get out of the elevator.

Things were awkward between Nick and Andy. They were also awkward between Andy and Gail. There was really no getting around the tension in the room.

“Officer McNally, would you like some tea?” Holly asked, standing up and walking into the kitchen to avoid the awkwardness.

“You can call me Andy,” Andy said and stood up, following Holly into the kitchen, “Why don’t I make you some? I mean you’re injured.”

“I have one good arm,” Holly joked and filled up her kettle with one hand.

Andy crossed her arms and leaned back on the counter across the island from Holly, “Your apartment is really beautiful.”

“Thanks,” Holly put the kettle on the stove. “It’s the closest one I could find to work. I like to walk.”

“Me too,” Andy smiled, “I find it’s good to clear my head before shift. It kinda helps afterwards too.”

 Holly nodded, “That’s always nice.”

Gail was watching this exchange from her spot on the couch. She wasn’t even paying attention to what was happing on the screen. Nick’s car just zoomed past hers and she didn’t do anything. She was listening to the conversation happening in the kitchen. She decided that Andy was getting too friendly with Holly. Andy liked getting too friendly with her people. Not that she owned them, not that Holly was really officially hers. Gail just – she didn’t like it. She stood up, dropping her controller back on the couch and strolled into the kitchen.

“Hey where are you going?” Nick asked, watching the last person abandon the race, leaving him to win completely unopposed.

Gail didn’t answer. She just stepped into the kitchen. She walked to the refrigerator and opened it like it was hers. She picked a grape out of the bag and ate one. “We should go to bed soon,” Gail closed the refrigerator and looked across the stove at Holly.

Holly nodded, “Okay. I’m going to make some tea and I’ll be up. Do you want some?”

Gail nodded, deciding that she was going to wait around for Holly to go upstairs. “Please.” She leaned on the island in the middle of the kitchen and looked at Andy, “Are you gonna be here all day?”

Andy shrugged, “We don’t have shift for another eight hours. I was going to see if you or Nick wanted to take a break and go home or something, while I stay here with Dr. Stewart.”

“You can call me Holly,” Holly interjected as she rummaged through her tea boxes.

“I’m staying with Holly,” Gail said, her voice filled with warning.

Andy knew she was stepping on Gail’s toes, she just wasn’t sure how, “Well Nick may need to go home or something. Two officers are better than one.”

“Depends on the officers,” Gail muttered.

Holly looked over her shoulder at Andy, “What kind of tea would you like Andy?”

“Um, Earl Grey if you have it,” Andy crossed her arms. Andy looked over at Gail, “Have you talked to Dov?”

“Yeah, I sat with him for a few hours yesterday,” Gail played with the salt and pepper shakers on the island. “Chloe didn’t move once the whole time we were in there.”

“I’m sure she’ll be okay,” Andy nodded, not really sure who she was trying to convince.

Holly set a mug in front of Andy along with a small carton of cream and some sugar.  Then set one in front of Gail. Gail looked into her tea and saw that it was already opaque from the cream in it. Gail quirked an eyebrow at Holly. Holly just smirked and took a sip of her own tea.

A phone rang in the living room and Holly put down her tea, “That’s mine.” She breezed out of the kitchen, leaving Andy and Gail alone.

“Gail,” Andy said softly, “I’m not trying to horn in here. I just want to help.”

Gail shook her head and flicked her wrist, effectively waving Andy off, “Whatever. You can stay if you want.” Gail picked up hers and Holly’s teas and walked up the stairs.

Holly spotted Gail while she was on her phone and, concerned, followed her up.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Holly told her friend on the other end of the line. She arrived at the top of the stairs and paused, “I’m sure.” Holly grinned “I’m actually about to go to bed, but next week?... awesome. Bye.”

Holly hung up and stepped into her bedroom. Gail was standing at the window, looking out at the road below. She was holding her tea with her arms crossed.

“It’s getting kinda cold in here,” Holly said to break Gail’s trance. She moved to the bed, “Do you need a sweater or something?”

Gail looked away from the window and shook her head, “No. I’m okay. Thanks.”

Holly laid down on her side facing Gail and patted the bed next to her, “What’s wrong?”

Gail hesitated and then walked to the bed. She sat on the bed, and crossed her legs. She cupped her mug in her hands and looked down into her tea, “I’m just tired to guess.”

Holly knew it had something to do with Andy, but she didn’t want to push. She knew Gail wouldn’t give it up anyway until she was ready. Holly stacked more pillows behind her and leaned back on them. “We should sleep.”

“Yeah,” Gail nodded and put her tea on the nightstand, “I’m working second shift today since I’ve been cleared.”

Holly was uncomfortable with that, but added, “Just be careful.”

Gail laid down on the pillows and looked over at Holly. “I will.” She inhaled and exhaled slowly, “I’ll find someone to stay with you while I’m on shift.”

“I am actually going to be on call,” Holly pulled a pillow out from under her head so that she only had one down under her head, “That was my friend who is also my boss and I am going to go back to work. There is a floater waiting for me in the morgue.”

“Someone needs to be there with you,” Gail set her jaw. She couldn’t really describe the feeling of knowing that Holly might be alone in a huge building  

Holly inhaled through her nose, “I’ll stop protesting my protection.” Holly swallowed. “I’m just kinda in denial about everything.” She paused and licked her lips, “We tell each other stuff right?”

Gail nodded, not picking up her head from the pillow.

“I’m scared,” Holly confessed. She bit her bottom lip, “Everything is really surreal right now and it kinda sunk in while we were playing video games, you know? Someone could be trying to kill me – kill us.”

“I won’t let that happen,” Gail swore.

Holly shook her head and looked away from Gail. She saw Gail’s hand resting on the bed. She reached forward and touched the top of it, tracing Gail’s every finger. “I don’t want anything to happen to you while you’re trying to protect me. I couldn’t…if anything happened, I couldn’t…”

Gail turned her hand over and watched Holly continue tracing her palm. “Well, we’ll look out for each other okay? I’ll work my shift and you’ll work in the lab because we can’t let fear stop us. Our jobs are to help people and those people need help whether or not someone is out to get us.”

Holly nodded, her eyes moving up to Gail’s.

“We can do it,” Gail told Holly, trying to convince the pathologist as well as herself, “Then we will finally go on a date.” Gail smiled hopefully trying to get Holly to relax, “It will have to be one hell of a date after this.”

Holly smiled and agreed. “A super date.”

“We could go to Niagara,” Gail offered. “Take a long weekend and party for three days.”

Holly smiled wider, “That sounds like a date that we will never be able to top.”

“There’s always Vegas,” Gail answered. She took Holly’s glasses off and set them on the nightstand behind her. She turned off the lamp and saw that there was still a light on. Holly got up off of the bed and turned off of the soft overhead light. The room plunged into darkness with the only light coming from the window.

“Do you mind if I close the curtains?” Holly asked, softly.

“No, go ahead,” Gail called.

After Holly closed the curtains, the room was pitch dark. She easily walked to the bed, knowing her bedroom and slipped into the bed. Holly made sure to stay on her side of the bed because she wasn’t sure the protocol for sleeping in a bed with Gail.

“We tell each other things right?” Gail asked into the darkness.

Holly ran her teeth over her bottom lip, “Of course.”

“I’m scared too,” Gail breathed out. She paused, to try to clear the lump in her throat, “I’m not scared of Ford coming after me. I’m scared of what could happen to you. I’m scared of what I would do if something happened to you. I’m scared of how much you mean to me.”

It wasn’t really anything Holly knew how to respond to. So she decided to use Gail’s own words, “We’ll make it through this, yeah? We’ll make it through and we’ll go to Niagara.” Holly made a leap and reached out for Gail with her good arm. Her hand made contact with Gail’s hand and she held Gail’s fingers in her hand, rubbing the tops of her fingers. She wanted Gail to smile, even though she couldn’t see it. “We’ll take my bed so you can finally fulfill all those promises you made it.”

Gail burst out laughing. As she laughed, she got closer and closer to Holly before she was close enough to touch Holly’s waist without extending her arm. Gail’s laughter trailed off and she wrapped her arm around Holly’s waist, careful to not jostle Holly’s injured arm.

Holly wasn’t sure how to move, but she slipped her hand under Gail’s head. They stayed like that, holding each other, but leaving some space between them.


	6. Chapter 6

There was some movement in the night and when Holly woke up to the sound of her alarm, she was on her back and Gail’s head was on her chest. Holly couldn’t reach her phone with Gail on her so she just let it play, knowing that Gail needed to get up as well.

Holly brushed Gail’s hair away from her face and kissed her forehead. Gail groaned and adjusted the position of her head a little higher on Holly’s chest. “I can see why you can’t get out of bed in the morning. Your alarm is like a lullaby.”

“You’re right,” Holly rested her hand on Gail’s head, “That must be the problem.”

“And owning the most comfortable bed in the world doesn’t help either,” Gail muttered.

 “True,” Holly agreed. She closed her eyes again and tried not to fall back asleep.

“It’s so warm,” Gail mumbled, not moving at all.

Holly made a noise that was meant to convey her agreement, but just came out as a groan.

After a minute, Gail added, “I have to get up.” However, she made no effort to do so.

Holly had already fallen back to sleep. Her chest rose and fell with her deep breaths. She slurred in her sleep, “Isotopes.”

Gail finally picked her head up and blinked. “Holly,” Gail pushed herself up.

Holly was pulled back into the waking world by Gail. She groaned, “No.”

Gail smiled and watched Holly try to pull the blankets up and over her head. Gail reached over Holly and turned the alarm off. “You seriously need a siren or something to wake you up. That alarm made me want to go back to sleep.”

“We should do that,” Holly rolled away from Gail. She forgot for a moment that she was injured before she rolled over and pain shot through her arm when her weight was on it. She immediately rolled back onto her back. She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for a pain to taper off. Then she said into the blanket over her face, “We should get up.”

Gail slowly pulled the blanket down off of Holly’s face, “You rolled over onto your arm didn’t you?”

Holly nodded with a pout.

Gail grinned and shook her head, “And they say you got through medical school.”

Holly sat up and rolled her eyes. She reached past Gail and grabbed her glasses off of the nightstand. She slipped them on and ran a hand through her hair. She looked at Gail for a moment before hitting her in the face with a pillow. Holly stood up right after she hit Gail and walked into the closet.

“I should arrest you for assault on a police officer,” Gail threw a pillow at Holly.

Holly artfully dodged it and coyly replied, “Maybe you should.”

Gail got out of the bed and walked into the closet with Holly. “You have less flannel than I imagined.”

“Again sorry to disappoint,” Holly moved some things around and then pulled out a shirt. “Do you want the bathroom first or shall I?”

“Go ahead,” Gail gestured out the closet door. “I think I’ll go downstairs and start some tea.”

“Okay. There’s coffee too if you want some.” Holly stepped into the bathroom and closed the door.

Gail kind of dreaded walking downstairs and finding Nick and Andy all cozy on the pull out. She was over Nick and was glad to have Holly, but Gail still felt a sting when she saw them together.

Luckily when she got downstairs, Andy was the only one on the couch. She was sitting up, watching the television. The couch had been put back to its original state and the coffee table had been moved back to where it was before.

Andy looked up when Gail walked down the stairs. “Hey, Nick had to go pick up his uniform from his apartment before we went in.”

Gail just nodded and continued making her way into the kitchen. Gail decided that she really liked the lighting in the kitchen when the overhead lights were off. There were a few under cabinet lights as well as the lights over the stove were soft and easy on her just waking eyes.

Andy followed Gail into the kitchen, “Who is going to stay with Holly while you’re on shift?”

Gail shook her head as she filled up the kettle, “I don’t know yet.” Gail sighed, “She’s going back into work.”

“The morgue is secured right?” Andy asked, crossing her arms.

Gail shrugged, “Yeah, but it’s not super hard to get in.” She turned her head and saw some flowers on the table through the doorway, “When did those get here?”

Andy looked at the flowers, “They got here like ten minutes after you two went to bed. I didn’t want to disturb you. The security guard knocked on the door and left them.”

“You didn’t think that they could be from Ford?” Gail demanded. She walked over to the flowers and peered inside the vase. “They could be poisoned or booby-trapped.” She spotted the card and looked around.

Andy darted to her duffle bag and pulled out some latex gloves. She handed one to Gail who used it to pull out the card. She looked at the flowery handwriting and asked. “Who is Corrine?”

“She is the woman that I met at the Penny a few nights ago,” Holly answered making her way down the stairs with the arm sling in her hand, “Are those from her?”

“Had a great time. Hope to see you again?” Gail read off the card to Holly.

Holly grinned and shrugged, “I’m a great date and I have to say, I was on my game that night.”

Gail just gaped as she watched Holly walk into the kitchen.

After a moment Holly stepped out of the kitchen, “Do you want tea, Andy?”

Andy looked at her watch, “I wish I had time to, but I really gotta go.”

“I’ll make it to-go,” Holly ducked back into the kitchen.

“That would be great,” Andy followed Holly into the kitchen, staring at her phone.

Gail followed and grabbed a banana off of the counter. “Fruit, McNally?”

Andy replied to a text, “Yeah, thanks.”

Gail handed Andy a banana and took another for herself. She peeled it and started eating while Holly made the tea. Gail saw Holly’s sling on the counter and picked it up, “Aren’t you supposed to be wearing this, Dr. Stewart?”

Holly looked over her shoulder at what Gail was talking about, “It was a suggestion. I’m fine. I can move my arm fine now.”

“Does it hurt?” Andy asked, taking a bite of her banana.

“A little, but it’s a lot better than it was.” Holly turned around with everyone’s teas in travel mugs. She placed Andy’s in front of her with the cream and sugar. Gail’s tea was already closed up in the mug. Holly picked up an apple. “Can I get a ride to work?”

Andy nodded, “Yeah. Nick took the squad car in so I can give you a ride.”

“You don’t have a car,” Gail quirked an eyebrow.

“I took Sam’s truck,” Andy said offhandedly as her phone buzzed. She looked down at it, “Marlo said that she could stay with you,” Andy looked up at Holly.

Holly nodded, “Okay.”

“Hold on,” Gail stopped Andy from replying to the text. “We’re going to put targets number one and two together in a basement with only one way out.”

“There are three ways out,” Holly corrected her.

“In a basement with three ways in?” Gail amended, still focusing on Andy.

Andy looked around for a trash can for her banana peel. Holly opened the cabinet under the sink and Andy tossed the peel into the compost bin that was lined up next to the recycling and the trash bins. “Marlo is fine now. She’s taking her medication. She’s been going to therapy. She’s a good officer. She’ll protect Holly.”

“Like she did in the station?” Gail asked back.

Andy went quiet. She looked away and then looked back. “Who do you trust then? Sam can barely move without ripping his stitches. Dov won’t leave the hospital. Everyone else is going to be on shift.” The way she spoke was not combative. It was calm and even. Andy was out of options.

Gail took a deep breath and looked over at Holly, “What would make you comfortable?”

“I’m most comfortable around dead people,” Holly answered, “I don’t think I’m the best judge for security purposes.”

Gail looked down at the counter, “Is Chris on shift?”

Andy nodded.

“Fine,” Gail stood up straight, “Tell Marlo to meet us there. Does she even have a gun anymore?”

“Yeah,” Andy texted Marlo that Holly wanted her there, “She’ll probably need your help getting it in, Holly.”

Holly nodded, “We’ll go through the loading bay. It won’t be a problem.”

Gail pulled her phone out of her pocket, “I’m going to see if Steve can go check on you a few times.”

Once all the logistics were figured out, Andy drove Holly the few blocks to her office. She parked in the loading bay. Marlo was waiting in her car.

“Hey,” Holly smiled when she saw Marlo.

“Hey,” Marlo forced a smile, knowing that Gail was not at all happy that she was there.

“Let’s go over all the entrances and exits,” Andy suggested.

Holly led the way to the bay door and tapped her ID card to the scanner. The door clicked and Holly opened it. She held it open for the three women and then walked in after them. A long stark hallway stood in front of them. Holly moved to the front of the group and peeked inside one of the doors as they passed it. Gail looked in after her and saw other people’s offices. There was even a security window where a large balding man sat.

“Hey Holly,” he said, barely looking up from the TV on his desk.

“Hey Carl,” Holly replied, walking right past the window. When they got a little ways down the hall, Holly explained, “Besides him, there’s no one here.”

She pushed open a door and held it open again. Gail took over the lead and walked through the curtain made of plastic strips, into the autopsy suite. Gail ran her hand along the edge of Holly’s desk that was stuck in the corner. It always stuck Gail as strange how at home she felt in Holly’s office. Everything was clean and sterile. Even Holly’s desk was a lot neater than her desk in her apartment.

“I love it here,” Gail added, moving to one of the racks of empty test tubes on the counter.

“The only way to get in straight to this floor is the loading bay,” Holly pointed out the glass door that looked toward the more common areas. “Then there’s the elevator that goes up to the ground floor. And of course the stairs.”

Marlo poked her head out the door and looked around before stepping back in Holly’s office. Marlo set a duffle bag down on the ground next to Holly’s desk.

“Gail, we gotta go,” Andy looked at her watch.

Gail put the test tubes back and turned around. She looked at the three women in the room before her eyes settled on Marlo, “The doors stay locked. You know what Abe Ford looks like.”

Marlo nodded, “Yeah.”

“We might need to call you,” Andy told Marlo.

Marlo understood that she knew the most about the Ford brothers. She tried not to cringe when she remembered that.

“I’m gonna go look around out here,” Marlo gestured to the area past the glass doors, “Make sure it’s clear.”

Andy nodded, “I’ll be out in the truck.” She left down the long hallway out to the loading bay.

Gail didn’t waste any time. She stepped right up to Holly and pulled Holly into a fierce kiss by the front of her shirt. Holly was surprised, but pleasantly so. She slipped her hands up to Gail’s cheeks and softly pulled Gail closer. Gail rested her forehead on Holly’s as she pulled away.

“If anything happens, I want to you to call me,” Gail looked right into Holly’s eyes, “A loud noise, or someone trying to get it. Even if you just get scared, okay?”

Holly nodded, biting her bottom lip. She pulled Gail into a hug, “Be careful.”

Gail held Holly tight and closed her eyes. “I’ll call to check in.”

Holly nodded, looking over Gail’s face and trying to calm her nerves. Kevin Ford managed to shoot an officer in the neck, shoot another one in the jacket, and kidnapped one of the most experienced men in the police department. Now the brother who masterminded the whole thing was on the loose. To say that Holly was a little apprehensive that Gail was going back on shift was an understatement.

After Gail and Andy left, Marlo followed Holly to the lab across the common area. She sat at one of the work areas and checked on Sam while Holly went over some labs that the techs had run earlier in the day. After catching up on labs, Holly walked back to her desk to pick up a few files. Marlo got ready to stand to give Holly her seat, but Holly stood across the desk, reading the first page of the file. Holly closed the blue folder and tucked it under her arm, “I’m going to go start this autopsy,” Holly explained, “You can step out of here if you want. It’s not going to be very pleasant.”

“No, I’ll stay,” Marlo adjusted her sitting position then adjusted the gun holster on her belt. It felt weird without the rest of the things she was used to having on her belt. She inhaled through her nose, the pain of not being part of the police force anymore still stinging inside.

“Okay,” Holly picked up another file. “You can grab a book if you want to.” Holly pointed to the small shelf behind her desk. “I don’t think there are a lot of leisure books in there though. There’s a really interesting one on gunshot wounds though.”

“Oh yeah?” Marlo turned around.

Holly pointed it out and Marlo picked it up. Holly excused herself to the bathroom off of the common area to change into some scrubs. When she returned, Holly picked up the file off of the dark counter. “Um, can you keep an eye on my phone? I don’t have anywhere to hold it and I want to know if something happens.”

“Of course,” Marlo accepted Holly’s phone and put it on the corner of her desk.

“Thank you,” Holly offered Marlo a smile and then referenced the file. She opened one of the stainless steel doors that closed the bodies in the massive refrigerator.

The smell immediately hit both women. Marlo put her hand over her nose, “That is disgusting.”

“This guy was in the water for about a week,” Holly pulled out the drawer revealing a standard deep blue body bag. She pulled the rolling autopsy table to her and easily transferred the body to the table with the help of some rollers on the drawer.

After Holly hooked the table up to a sink, she walked to her desk and opened the drawer. She pulled out a small recording device that she slipped into the back pocket of her scrubs and a small microphone that she attached to the collar of her top.

“That’s so that you can record your findings right?” Marlo asked, comfortable watching the autopsy from a distance.

Holly nodded as she put up her hair in a ponytail. “The software I have will transcribe it for me so it’ll be easier for the police and prosecutors to have all the information.”

Marlo continued to watch Holly put on latex gloves and then a surgical mask. Holly opened a set of surgical scalpels and began the autopsy.

=+=+=+=

Gail stared at her phone while she was waiting for the parade to start. It hadn’t made a peep since she left the morgue and all the terrible things that could have happened to Holly run through her head.

“I just texted Marlo,” Andy whispered to Gail. “They’re both fine. Holly is doing an autopsy right now.”

Gail turned her phone over so she would stop staring at it. Then she turned it back over because she didn’t want to miss anything. Then she turned it back over, “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’m freaking out. I don’t freak out.”

“You care,” Andy flipped over Gail’s phone and slid it in front of her.

“How’s Holly?” Chris sat down next to Gail.

“She’s fine,” Gail muttered, looking at her phone. “How’s Dov?”

Chris took a breath, “He’s, uh, he’s still at the hospital. Chloe’s husband kicked him out of the room, but he won’t leave.”

“I’m sorry, Chloe’s what?” Traci asked, sitting down next to Andy.

Chris nodded, “Apparently Chloe got married in Niagara before she came over to 15.”

“And she never said anything about it?” Gail gaped, suddenly feeling a little less sorry for Chloe and sorrier for Dov.

Chris shook his head.

After a moment of quiet, Traci asked, “Who’s with Holly?”

“Marlo,” Andy answered.

There was a dense silence before Nick appeared. He had two cups of coffee in his hands and set them in front of Gail and Andy. “I thought you two might need it. It’s been a long twenty-four hours.”

Gail accepted it with a slight glare. She was still trying to be mad at Nick and Andy in the midst of all this Ford stuff. It was just a lot of emotion to keep up with.

Frank stepped in front of the room and everyone fell silent. He gave the usual speech about staying vigilant. She gave everyone an update on Chloe which was basically that there was no update. He told everyone that all the detectives were currently working on finding Abe Ford and that all the street officers should keep an eye out for clues and radio in anything that could be a lead. The other division had called in their off-duty officers again and all calls have two cars responding.

“Whoever has Patrol Area 4 needs to swing around the morgue a couple times an hour. Keep an eye out for anything suspicious,” Frank closed up his folder. “Serve, protect, and let’s all come home tonight.”

Gail picked up her phone as she stood. She hoped that she got Patrol Area 4. She wanted to be the one to drive past the morgue to make sure everything was alright. She was disappointed to find that she was in the adjacent patrol area with Nick.

Gail pretended like she didn’t see Nick and Andy say goodbye to each other. She was over them being together. She just didn’t need to see them kiss.

“McNally, Diaz,” Frank called them.

Gail lingered in the back of the parade room to watch Frank talk to them. They were the ones that were going to drive by the morgue so she wanted to know what they did.

“Gail?” Nick called from down the hallway.

She looked up and saw him waiting for her. She looked back in the parade room and caught Chris’s eyes. He nodded to her, a silent promise between friends to look out for Holly.

Gail lingered for a moment more before following Nick out to the squad car. As she got into the passenger’s seat, Gail’s phone vibrated. She opened her pocket, pulled it out, and saw that she had a text. She was both relieved and disappointed when she saw it wasn’t from Holly.

But Chris’s message was simple. _Call Holly._

=+=+=+=

Marlo had to step out of the room when Holly pulled out the skull saw so Holly barely caught the sound of her phone as the saw wound down on the second ring. Holly turned off her recording device, stripped off her gloves, and grabbed it.

“Hello?” Holly asked, slightly breathless from the rush.

“Where were you?” Gail asked, “I tried to call you and you didn’t pick up.”

Holly knew the severity of the situation so she didn’t fault the accusatory tone in Gail’s voice, “Sorry, I didn’t hear my phone ring over the skull saw.”

Gail took a moment to compose herself, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Holly answered, understandingly, “What’s up?”

“We’re just heading out,” Gail tried to explain tactfully, “I wanted to make sure you were okay before we started going to calls.”

“Yup,” Holly nodded, looking around. She looked out the glass door and saw Marlo walking from door to door, checking to make sure no one was still there. “It’s quiet here. Except for the saw.”

Gail smiled at Holly’s attempt at making her laugh. It was lame, but it was the thought that mattered. Gail’s smiled faded when she heard the radio start buzzing with calls, “Listen, Holly, I-” Gail started, but choked on her words. She looked down and said, “Be careful okay?”

“I will,” Holly nodded, leaning back on her desk. Her voice was heavy with the intense emotions that came with knowing Gail was going to be on the front line during this war the Ford brothers had waged on the police department. “You too. My, um, my bed will miss you a lot if you don’t show up tomorrow morning.”

Gail smiled, “Tell your bed, that I’ll be there. I promise.” Gail said a quick goodbye after that and looked at her phone for a moment after she hung up.

When she looked up, Nick was grinning from ear to ear. Gail rolled her eyes and punched him in the arm, “Shut up.”


	7. Chapter 7

Marlo walked back into Holly’s autopsy suite after the skull saw had been put up. She sat down at the desk and said, “I just talked to Sergeant Best. Andy and Chris are going to be patrolling this area and they’re going to drive by here a few times during their shift the check outside.”

Holly wished that there wasn’t such a fuss over her security, but she knew better than to argue at this point. She just nodded, “Okay. If you have their numbers you should tell them that I have a coffee maker down here if they want to stop by when they get a break.”

Marlo agreed and sent a text to Andy.

=+=+=+=

Frank leaned back at his desk and looked at the notes that he made. He had officers watching Oliver’s apartment. He had officers outside of Chloe’s hospital room. He had officer’s driving by the morgue. He even had an old friend keeping an eye on his place to make sure Noelle and the baby were safe.

As much as he wanted to be out there in the field, helping out his fellow officers, he knew he needed to stay with the detectives to make sure he was the first to know what was going on.

He looked through the walls of mirrors to the detectives’ area. They had all the boards covered with photos and information. There were strings and markers connecting dots. Maps had pins in them and detectives were on phones. Frank knew that his detectives were capable, but he knew that one of his best detectives was at home with a gunshot wound.

He also remembered that he lost a good officer. He didn’t want her gone, but he knew it wouldn’t be easy for her to stay. Cruz was a good officer and he was more than happy to coordinate with McNally and Cruz to make sure that Dr. Stewart was protected. He knew that there weren’t enough officers to go around giving a protective detail to everyone that needed it.

He ran a hand over his eyes and stood from his desk. He couldn’t just sit there. He had to get involved with the investigation.

=+=+=+=

It took a few hours, but Holly managed to wrap up the autopsy, finding a definitive cause of death, a solid pre-mortem timeline, and e-mail the homicide investigator in charge of the case. When she stood from her desk, she looked over at Marlo who was looking over her gunshot wounds book.

“Are you hungry?” Holly asked.

Marlo looked up, “Yeah, a little.”

“I don’t think there is much open around here at this time, but there are some interesting selections in the vending machines in the lounge,” Holly offered, grabbing her wallet.

As they walked to the lounge, Marlo got a call from Andy. “Andy and Chris are on their break so they’re going to stop by.”

“Awesome,” Holly opened the door for Marlo into the lounge. It was basically a small room with one glass wall across from the elevator. The tables were clean and vending machines lined one wall, “Are they coming in through the bay or the ground floor?”

Marlo relayed the question to Andy who answered that they would just come in through the ground floor. After Holly asked Marlo what she wanted to eat from the machines, Marlo took the elevator up to the ground floor with Holly’s keys to let Andy and Chris in.

“I wonder how old that chicken salad is,” Holly muttered to herself as she looked over the selections.

She was debating over cookies and trail mix when she heard footsteps on the ground near her office. She froze to make sure that she actually heard what she thought it was. She heard another set of footsteps, echoing off of the sterile walls. Her heart started pounding. She turned around to see that the elevator was still on the ground floor so it couldn’t be the officers coming down for their coffee.

Holly felt like she couldn’t breathe. When she heard the footsteps get closer, she was frozen in her spot. Her brain was screaming at her to hide or find a weapon, or call someone – anyone really. But she couldn’t move.

“Hello?” a man’s voice called. “Dr. Stewart?”

Holly thought that the voice sounded familiar, but she wasn’t sure so she crept toward the door of the lounge. At first she saw the shoulder of a man standing near the elevators. Then she saw the back of his head as she inched out the door. Her eyes darted around looking at all the possible ways out. If she caught him off guard, she could get into her office and lock the door behind her or just sprint out to the loading bay.

“Dr. Ste-” the voice stopped.

Holly was so wrapped up in her escape plan that she didn’t see the man finally notice her. She felt the breath reenter her body when she saw a familiar and friendly face, “Detective Peck.”

“Hey,” he smiled, “I’m sorry if I scared you. Gail has been bugging me for an hour to come check on you.”

Before Holly’s could reply there was a loud bang and flashlights shining around. “Get on the ground!” a loud yell echoed through the room. “Hands in the air!”

“Get on the ground!”

Everything faded out around Holly. The flashlights strobed in front of her. It felt like there was a massive weight on her chest. She started panting, but it felt like she was underwater. When she saw the guns, everything started to move in slow motion. She could feel the handcuffs on her wrists and the SWAT officers looking at her. She could feel Ford lose his grip on her and she could see herself trying to escape before tripping. She could hear the gunshots and then everything went black.

“Holly,” she could hear someone calling her from far away. “Holly.”

It took a moment but she finally rose back to reality. She was sitting in a chair in the lounge. Andy, Marlo, Chris, and Steve were all standing in front of her.

“Wha-what happened?” Holly asked, startled.

“Marlo heard a man’s voice down here and we all came down the stairs,” Andy explained softly, and slowly, “I think you had a panic attack.”

“I-I-I’ve never had a panic attack before,” Holly shook her head.

“You’ve had a rough couple of days,” Steve put his hand on her shoulder. “But you’re safe now.”

Holly rubbed her eyes and nodded. She found that her cheeks were wet and tried to play the whole thing off, “I’ll start the coffee.” She subtly wiped her eyes as she made her way to the counter that held the coffee.

No one was really sure how to handle Holly because none of them really knew her. Steve had met her a few times because of cases, but they weren’t friendly. Honestly, he thought she was kinda weird.

“Is this what you’re eating for dinner?” Steve poked a bag of chips.

“Yeah,” Holly adjusted her glasses. “There’s nothing open around here.”

“I’ll run down the street and grab you two some sandwiches,” Andy offered, “Or a pizza? I know a place that’s close.”

“Yeah,” Steve put his hands in his pockets. He pulled out some money and handed it to Andy, “Take Cruz.”

Holly leaned on the counter and looked at the two men still with her. She swallowed, “Just don’t tell Gail about my…freak out or whatever.”

Steve nodded. “Yeah, no problem.”

Holly sat down at one of the tables and Chris took a seat as well. Steve leaned on the back of one of the chairs before sitting down as well.

“Are you doing okay?” Chris asked, breaking the silence.

Holly shrugged. She felt like the wall she so carefully build and hid behind was crumbling. “Yeah. I’m fine.”

Steve leaned forward onto the table. He seemed to know that Holly wasn’t actually fine. Holly figured that he knew as well because she was never really good at hiding things.

Chris asked Steve to break the silence yet again, “Are there any leads?”

Steve nodded, “I just got done following my leads to dead ends, but Traci has a few that she’s working on.” Steve added more to Holly, “We’ll get this guy soon.”

Holly looked over her shoulder and saw the coffee was ready, “Would you two like some coffee?”

“Yeah, thanks,” Chris nodded.

Steve politely declined as his phone rang. He excused himself to step out of the lounge and take the call, leaving Holly and Chris alone.

Holly poured Chris some coffee and sat back down, sliding the paper cup to him.

Chris blew on the coffee and took a sip. “I know we’re basically strangers, but with this job, in this situation, you have to trust someone. It can be your roommate or the bartender at the Penny or your co-workers or your…significant other, family, but you have to trust someone because all of this is too much to carry on your own.”

Holly swallowed and nodded, looking down at her coffee. She wasn’t sure what to make of it. She was almost positive that Chris was pushing her to confide in Gail, but Holly wasn’t sure she should just yet.

“Have there been any more incidences with shooting at police officers?” Holly had to ask Chris.

Chris shook his head, “No. We’re being really careful.”

“Good,” Holly picked up her coffee.

Steve stepped back into the lounge with his phone in his hand, “I have to go. I think we have a viable lead.” Steve started inching back out the door and pointed to Chris, “Stay here until Cruz gets back?”

Chris nodded, “Yeah.”

Steve quickly walked away toward the loading bay.

“That’s good right?” Holly asked Chris.

Chris nodded, “I hope so.”

They sat in an uncomfortable silence until Marlo and Andy returned with a pizza. “C’mon Chris, we gotta go,” Andy dropped the pizza on the lounge table, “We got a call on the radio.”

Chris checked the volume on his radio, “I didn’t hear anything.”

“It’s probably because we’re underground,” Holly offered, she waved her phone, “Sometimes the cell service sucks too.”

“I’ll go with you to lock the door,” Marlo jingled Holly’s keys in her pocket.

Holly picked up the pizza and stood, “I’ll come with you. We can eat in the waiting room.” The truth was that she didn’t want to be left alone again. There was still a sliver of fear that stayed with her after her little episode. She couldn’t really shake it and didn’t know how to handle it.

Marlo seemed to understand and grabbed two waters out of the vending machine before riding the elevator up.

Holly locked Chris and Andy out of the main building, then sat with Marlo at the small sitting area in the waiting room. Holly thought that it was nice, looking out the glass windows onto the streetlight lit street. The only part she didn’t like about her job was that there weren’t any windows to look out while she was working.

“I wasn’t sure what you liked to I got half vegetable, half cheese,” Marlo explained, opening the box.

Holly smiled kindly, “I’m not picky.” She grabbed a slice of cheese and sat back in her chair across the plain coffee table from Marlo.

“How’s Detective Swarek?” Holly asked, remembering that both Marlo and Andy had taken him home.

Marlo finished chewing and then answered, “He’s good. I left him with some DVDs. When I left he was watching Caddyshack which is apparently a lot funnier when you’re taking painkillers.”

Holly laughed, “I bet.”

“You’re not taking anything?” Marlo asked, gesturing to Holly’s arm.

Holly shook her head, “I’m fine. It was just a flesh wound.”

Marlo looked down and then back up at Holly, “I never really got a chance to thank you for what you did in the station.”

Holly didn’t really know what to say. This was a completely unique situation apart from every situation that she’d ever been in. With that, everything that was happening to her was new and she wasn’t sure how to handle it. She’s never been thanked for her actions in front of an armed madman before.

“You save Sam and me,” Marlo added.

Holly pushed her glasses up her nose with the back of her hand, “If our roles had been reversed, you’d have done the same for me.”

Marlo agreed. “Absolutely.”

Holly leaned back in her chair and took a sip of her water. She leisurely looked out the window. “My next autopsy can be put off until tomorrow if you want to drop me off at my place and go check on Detective Swarek.”

“I don’t think Gail would be very happy with me if I let you alone.” Marlo tossed a pizza crust back into the box, “Not like she’s very happy with me to begin with.”

Holly put her arm on the back of her chair and rested her cheek on her closed fist, “None of this is your fault.”

“A lot of it actually is,” Marlo tried to swallow the lump in her throat.

“You didn’t tell Ford to run around shooting people,” Holly leaned forward so that Marlo would hear her words. “Everything could have happened a lot differently had Kevin Ford’s brother not pushed him to do this. Or if Abe Ford did it himself. From what I’ve heard their father wasn’t a great proponent of good mental health for them either.”

“But I started it,” Marlo tried to fight tears, “I followed Kevin Ford. I got obsessed.”

Holly pushed her glasses up onto the top of her head, “What happened to Chloe and Sam and me was just a series of events that unfolded a certain way. At any point in time, a tiny change could have derailed this particular train of events. Things just happen and there’s not a lot that we can do about it except deal with the aftermath and move on.”

Marlo looked away still feeling like it was her fault.

Holly took a deep breath knowing that she didn’t know Marlo enough to talk her out of beating herself up over everything. She wished that she could. If she’d been learned anything from finding the cause of deaths over the years, Holly knew that there wasn’t a whole lot of blame in the world. Just a lot of series of unfortunate happenings that could all be prevented, but rarely were.

After they were done eating, they took the remaining pizza down the stairs. Holly stood dutifully by the elevator while Marlo made sure that the basement was still clear. When Marlo returned, she walked with Holly back to the autopsy suite.

“I can do another autopsy or we can leave,” Holly offered. “It’s up to you.”

“I’m fine if you want to stay,” Marlo sat back down at Holly’s desk.

Holly picked up a file and flipped through it. “I just have some bones to look at, then we can get out of here.”

=+=+=+=

“1504 responding,” Nick said into his radio. “Can we get some backup?”

There was a short silence before there was another voice crackling over the radio, “1510 coming in for backup.”

When they got to the sight of the call, the 1510 squad car was already there. Nick and Gail got out of their car and as they did, the doors to 1510 opened.

Gail saw Andy and Chris get out of the car. Andy usually took the lead, but knew that Gail was taking charge now. Gail was upset and funneling all of her tumultuous emotions into her work.

“When was the last time you talked to Holly?” Chris asked Gail quietly as they walked up to the front door.

“It’s been a few hours,” Gail looked up at him, “Why?”

Chris looked on both sides of the house and then knocked, “Police!” He turned back to Gail, “I’m just saying, that after this call, you should call her.”

Gail looked back at Andy who nodded.  “Yeah, um, you should.”

“What’s going on?” Gail asked the pair, but didn’t get an answer because the door opened.

“What?” the man demanded.

Chris put his hands on his belt, “We got a call for a disturbance at this address. Do you mind if we look around?”

“Yeah, I mind,” the man tried to close the door, but Gail stopped the door with her hand.

Gail was not in the mood to put up with drunk, middle aged men in their boxers who reeked of cheap scotch, “Sir, is there anyone else in the house?”

“There’s not anyone -“ the man started, then there was a crash inside.

A woman behind him yelled, “You son of a bitch!”

All the officers rushed into the house to find a woman with a lamp in her hand ready to throw it. When she saw the police officers, she dropped the lamp and ran.

“I hate it when they run,” Gail muttered as she took off running after the woman.

=+=+=+=

“That’s a lot more colorful than I thought it would be,” Marlo commented as she looked through the microscope.

“Isn’t it cool?” Holly smiled, putting the box back under the sink, “Most people use it as a cleaner. It’s actually just the silica shells of tiny fresh water marine plant life. They make a great abrasive.”

“I think I remember looking at something like this in my college biology class,” Marlo pulled away from the microscope. “This is really cool.”

“I’m glad you think so,” Holly took out the glass slide and rinsed it off in the sink. She put the slide back in the slide rack and then shrugged off her lab coat. “I use them a lot to identify cause of death when the body has been submerged in water.”

Marlo turned off the microscope. She looked over at Holly, “Are you ready to get out of here?”

“Yeah,” Holly put a few files in her bag to take home and then put her bag over her shoulder, “Where to?”

“You said you wanted to get a drink earlier,” Marlo offered, “I can’t take my gun into The Penny, but we can go by the liquor store and head to your apartment.” She looked at her watch, “Everyone else is about to get off of shift so they can come over too.”

“That sounds awesome,” Holly nodded. “Do you want to go pick up Detective Swarek? I don’t want you to neglect him because you’re stuck with me.”

Marlo smiled, “You’d be okay with that?”

“I don’t see why we shouldn’t pick him up,” Holly shrugged nonchalantly.


	8. Chapter 8

The couple from the house was separated and each taken back to the station because they both tried to hit the arresting officers. Andy barely dodged being hit in the face with a tennis racket the woman swung at her and Gail when they cornered her in the bedroom.

As Gail was walking into booking, behind the woman that ran from her, her phone buzzed in her pocket. It was just a text from Holly letting her know that she, Sam, and Marlo were going back to her apartment with alcohol. There was another quick text to tell Gail to spread the word that everyone could come over after their shift.

“Hey,” Gail caught Nick as he was about to walk past booking, “Can you take her? I have to go make a call.”

“You calling Holly?” Chris asked from behind her.

Nick took hold of the woman’s arm as Gail broke away from the woman she arrested. She stepped up to and squared up with Chris, “What is wrong with Holly?”

Chris and Andy looked at each other then back at Gail. Andy licked her lips, “She asked us not to say.”

“Technically Steve was the only one that agreed not to say anything,” Chris mumbled to Andy.

“Steve was there?” Gail was surprised that her brother didn’t call her after going to check on Holly. She had texted him like six times to go check on her, but he never replied. Gail decided that she was done asking Andy and Chris questions. She walked toward the bullpen and put her phone to her ear.

“Hey,” Holly answered cheerfully.

“Hey,” Gail sat on the surface of the first available desk. “How’s it going?”

“Great,” Holly looked over the labels of the massive liquor collection in the store, “Are you coming over after your shift?”

“Yeah, of course,” Gail frowned, trying to figure out a tactful way to ask what she needed to know. “Did Steve go check on you?

“Yeah,” Holly’s enthusiasm faded a little. She picked up a bottle of scotch that she was sure Gail would like and kept walking toward Sam and Marlo.

“Everything is fine?” Gail asked, really not wanting to have to ask directly.

Holly leaned on the cart, “Yeah. Marlo and Sam are with me. Do you want anything special from the liquor store?”

Sam’s arm was around Marlo when they turned to put their selections in the cart Holly was pushing.

“You know what I like,” Gail sputtered out. She wanted to know what happened and it was evident that she wasn’t going to get it out of Holly. “I’ll be over in like an hour.”

“Awesome,” Holly grinned. “Be safe.”

“Yeah, I will,” Gail muttered and hung up. “McNally!” Gail barked across the station.

Andy wandered into the bullpen. She spotted Gail among the other officers and walked up to her. Immediately when she was within arm’s reach, Gail pulled her into an interrogation room.

“What happened to Holly?” Gail demanded as soon as the door clicked closed.

Andy was conflicted. It wasn’t really her secret to tell. She wrung her hands.

Gail’s voice was shaking when she said, “Andy, you owe me.”

Andy sighed, knowing that Gail was right. “It’s not that bad,” Andy explained, not wanting to keep Gail out of the loop anymore because she could see that her friend was really worried. “Chris and I dropped by because Holly said she made coffee, and, of course, to check on her. But when Marlo went to the ground floor to let us in, Steve came in the loading bay hallway. He was calling Holly or something and we heard it. Marlo, Chris, and I went down the stairs with our guns out. We didn’t see it was Steve right away so we yelled at him to put his hands up and get on the ground. I don’t know what triggered it, but Holly had kind of a panic attack. She just shut down for like five minutes. She was crying and she didn’t really respond to us.” Andy paused to take in Gail’s reaction, which just seemed to be that Gail was processing the information. “I’m sorry, Gail. She asked us not to tell you because she didn’t want you to be distracted.”

Gail clenched her jaw and then licked her lips, “Is she okay?”

“She didn’t really want to talk about it,” Andy answered softly. “I just think that she needs someone to talk to and she doesn’t really know any of us.”

Gail nodded slowly, “Okay. Are you coming over to her apartment after shift? Marlo and Holly went to get Swarek then to the liquor store apparently on the way to Holly’s place.”

Andy nodded, “Yeah. I think we all just need to be together now.”

=+=+=+=

When they got to Holly’s apartment building, Marlo stopped at the security desk. She handed the guard a picture of Abe Ford and told him that if he saw Abe to call her immediately. Holly and Sam didn’t ask where she got the picture because they probably didn’t want to know.

Once they made it to the apartment, Holly was putting the liquor on the island in the kitchen. Her phone rang, slightly startling her. She looked over her shoulder to make sure that Sam and Marlo didn’t notice. They were both sitting on the couch, trying to make sure that Sam was comfortable so they didn’t notice.

Holly pulled her phone out of her pocket and answered, “Hello?”

“Hey Holly,” a friendly voice said in her ear, “It’s Megan.”

“Hey,” Holly smiled, “How are you?”

“Good,” Megan replied, happy that Holly was happy to hear from her, “I just wanted to let you know that that officer that was shot in the neck, uh…Chloe Price…She’s going into surgery.”

“What?” Holly immediately frowned, “For what?”

Megan paused, checking the chart on the computer terminal in the nurses’ station, “There’s a clot near her heart. Look, you know I’m not even supposed to tell you this.”

“Yeah, I know,” Holly said understandingly, “Thank you for calling me, Megan.”

Holly hung up and looked at her phone. She stepped into the living room and looked at Marlo and Sam who were looking for something to watch on the TV. She debated whether or not to tell them. In the end, she figured Marlo was upset enough and Sam was too doped up to do anything anyway.

Holly excused herself to go upstairs and called Gail. She sat on her bed and listed to the phone ring.

“Hey,” Gail answered her phone, “Are you okay?”

Holly blinked, “Yeah. I’m fine. I just wanted to let you know that Chloe is going into surgery.”

“How did you know that? Are you in the hospital?” Gail seemed panicky to Holly, maybe Gail was even a little suspicious. It put Holly on edge.

Holly shook her head, “No. My friend from med school works that floor and thought I’d want to know. Are you okay?”

Gail licked her lips, “Yeah.”

“Do you need me to bring you some clothes to change into before you go to the hospital?” Holly asked.

It took a moment for Gail to register what Holly asked. “How do you know I’m going to the hospital?”

“Dov needs support,” Holly told her. “Your friends are important to you.”

“You’re important to me too,” Gail leaned back against a wall, “And you’re…Don’t be mad. I made Andy tell me what happened at the morgue with Steve.”

Holly laid back on her bed. She sighed heavily, “It wasn’t a big deal.”

“But it was something,” Gail furrowed her eyebrows.

“It _was_ something,” Holly admitted, “But Chloe is going into surgery and Dov isn’t allowed to see her. He needs you.” She wanted to tell Gail that Dov needed her more than she did, but at that point she wasn’t so sure.

Gail put her hand on her forehead, “Holly, I want- ” Gail looked down at her boots. She was torn between going to be with Holly, to protect her, and talk to her, and going to the hospital to be with Dov.

“I’m going to tell the security guard that you’re not allowed to come up,” Holly stated with finality.

“What?” Gail asked, completely dumbfounded.

Holly sat up on her bed, “You can’t come to my apartment until you find Megan at the hospital and have her call me.”

“Are you blackmailing me into going to be with Dov?” Gail couldn’t stop the smile from creeping up her face.

“That is exactly that I’m doing,” Holly stated, “Goodbye, Officer Peck.” With that, Holly hung up.

She flopped back on her bed and put her phone to her chest. She wanted Gail with her more than anything, but she knew that Dov needed her too.

=+=+=+=

Nick and Andy showed up with groceries and a promise to make the best fajitas in the city. Holly was fine with her apartment being taken over. She knew that she needed the protection and she knew that the officers needed a secure place to hang out. She just couldn’t help, but want to just crawl into bed with Gail.

“Holly, is it okay with Traci brings her son Leo?” Andy asked the forensic pathologist who was sitting on the couch, watching Alien with Marlo and Sam. “Traci is feeling weird about being in her apartment alone.”

“Yeah, of course,” Holly agreed.

Within an hour, Oliver and Celery, Traci and Leo, and Steve showed up. Steve immediately sought out Holly. He offered to make her a drink when he saw that hers was empty.

“No I’m fine,” Holly looked into her glass, “It was just water anyway.”

Steve looked around, “Is there anywhere to talk upstairs?”

“Leo is asleep on my bed, but we can go to my office,” Holly stood up. She led the way to her office and immediately went to one of the bookshelves.

 “Gail told me that McNally told her what happened,” Steve put his hands in his pockets.

Holly shrugged, straightening a few books, “She was bound to find out eventually. I’m a terrible liar.”

“Are you okay?” Steve asked, “I know I’m not Gail, but I’m here if you want to talk about it.”

Holly turned around and looked at Steve who was leaning on the doorway, “I’m just exhibiting signs of post-traumatic stress. Logically, it makes sense.”

“Sometimes logical doesn’t feel so logical,” Steve offered. “I’ve woken up a few times in the middle of the night thinking that someone had kidnapped Gail or something happened to our parents. A few times I have nightmares about homicide victims.” He stood up straight, “But that’s what I signed up for. You didn’t really sign up for this.”

Holly held a book to her chest and looked down. She moved to the chair, “I just don’t want Gail to worry about me. She has Dov and Chloe to worry about.” She raised her head and look at Steve, “I want to her concentrate on keeping herself safe.”

Steve nodded in agreement. “That’s why I agreed not to tell her about what happened in the morgue.” Steve took a deep breath, “But Gail is smart and she’s tough. She can take care of herself, no matter how much we want to take care of her. And she has other people watching her back too.”

Holly set the book on her desk and inhaled deeply.

She was silent so Steve pulled a stepping stool that was in front of the bookcase, in front of Holly. He sat down and was only a little shorter than her when he did. “Do you have any family that you can talk to?”

Holly looked down and her hair fell around her face. She shook her head. “No. I don’t.” She sniffled, winning her battle against her tears. She stood up, “I’m fine. Really.”

Steve stood with her, “If you want to talk, come find me, okay? I can make snarky comments just like Gail. I’ve had a lot of practice.”

Holly smiled, “Thank you so much, Steve.”

Steve moved in and hugged Holly, “No worries.”

It was a brief hug, but Holly found herself feeling a little better. Holly ran a hand through her hair, “I just bought a new gaming console if Leo wakes up and you want to move it to my bedroom to play with him.”

Steve grinned, “So Gail told you about me and Traci?”

Holly nodded, “Gail wants you and Traci to date.” She elected to keep the reason to herself. She wasn’t sure what Gail has actually told Steve.

Steve laughed, “Gail has told me that Traci will be first girlfriend I’ve ever had that she could stand to my face at least ten times.”

Holly smiled. She should have known that Gail told Steve exactly what she thought.

They made their way back downstairs to join the festivities. The gaming console was already turned on and Nick was trying to coach Oliver through a match with Andy and Traci.

=+=+=+=

Gail looked at her phone. She was there for Dov, but she didn’t want to miss anything else. Gail looked around the waiting room, scanning for someone out of the ordinary. Then she looked back at her phone.

Dov was sitting silently, occasionally glancing at Chloe’s husband who was across the room. Chris was next to him, arms crossed, nodding in and out of sleep.

“I don’t get why she didn’t tell me,” Dove ran a hand over his hair.

Gail looked over at him, “Maybe she forgot. It doesn’t seem like the thought it was a big deal. And it was Niagara. There is a chance that she doesn’t actually remember what happened.”

“I don’t know,” Dov shrugged. He ducked his head and ran both of his hands over his head and to the back of his neck. “Should I even be here?”

“You care about her,” Chris patted his shoulder, “You should be with her if you want to.” Chris moved his eyes from Dov to Gail.

Gail looked at her phone and flexed her jaw. She turned to Dov, “Dov, when Chloe gets out of surgery, I’m going to go check on Holly.”

“Yeah,” Dov nodded, “Of course.”

Chloe was out of surgery forty-five minutes later and after she was settled in, Gail started her search for Megan. She first stopped at the nurse’s station and asked a nurse, “Hey, do you know where I can find a doctor named Megan?”

The nurse looked around and then stepped around the desk. She looked down the hallway and called, “Dr. Fields.”

A woman stopped what she was doing and walked over to the nurse. The nurse just gestured vaguely to Gail. Gail looked the woman over. She was cute in her light pink scrubs and her black and pink sneakers. Her hair was up in a neat brown ponytail and she immediately smiled upon seeing Gail.

“Gail?” she asked.

Gail nodded, “I need you to call Holly for me, please.”

Dr. Fields fished a phone out of the pocket of her lab coat and nodded, “I can absolutely do that.” She tapped around on her phone and put the phone to her ear. As she was waiting for Holly to pick up, Megan asked, “How’s your friend?”

“The clot is gone. They’re just waiting for her to wake up,” Gail put her hands in her pockets. “I just…need to go see Holly now.”

Megan smiled wider and then her attention was to her phone, “Hey Stewart, Gail just checked in. You can let her in now…alright…bye.” She hung up and dropped her phone into her pocket. Megan looked at Gail, “You’re all set.”

“Thank you,” Gail muttered and walked away.

=+=+=+=

When she arrived at the apartment, she was surprised by the number of people. It wasn’t really an apartment made for large amounts of people, but the officers that were in the living room were making it work.

“Hey,” Steve hopped up with he saw Gail and hugged her, “How’s it going?”

Gail shrugged, “It’s going. Aren’t you supposed to be investigating?”

“The detectives are being sent home in eight hour shifts,” Steve answered and looked Gail over, “You’re okay right?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Gail blew off his question and looked behind him, “Where’s Holly?”

“Last time I saw her, she was walking upstairs,” Steve offered. “She’s probably not in her room because Leo is asleep in her bed.”

Gail nodded absently and walked past Steve and up the stairs. She straightened her sweater as she walked up the stairs. She was trying to make enough noise so that she wouldn’t startle Holly, but not too much that it would scare her.

However as she walked, deep in thought, she almost tripped over the person she was looking for, sitting in the middle of the stairs. Gail looked down to find Holly with a book in her hand. When their eyes met, Holly smiled. She stood up and hugged Gail, “Hey, How’s Chloe?”

“She’s fine,” Gail held Holly’s arms and looked her over, “What are you doing on the stairs?”

“Leo is asleep in my room and Celery is…doing something in my office. I just needed a breather.” Holly answered. She took her turn looking Gail over, “I’m glad you’re here.”

Gail was one step down from Holly so when she wrapped her arms around Holly, she hit right at Holly’s waist. Holly’s arms rested on Gail’s shoulders. They just kind of held each other on the stairs. Gail gripped the back of Holly’s shirt and held her tight. Holly buried her face between her arm and Gail’s neck.

Gail tilted her head up and pressed her lips to Holly’s neck. Then she kissed Holly’s jaw. She pulled away enough to capture Holly’s lips. Holly pulled her arms back and put her hands on Gail’s face. Holly pulled Gail against her, and deepened the kiss.

Gail ran her hands from Holly’s lower back, up across her back and her shoulders where she pulled Holly to her. The kiss made her feel better than she had felt since she left Holly at the morgue. She knew that Holly was okay and that she was safe. She wanted to take away all the pain and anxiety that Holly had. She knew that Holly didn’t know something like that could have happened if she was to the police station. In fact, she probably felt safest there in the midst of all those officers. Gail still felt bad that she blew Holly off right before she got shot.

Gail leaned back and let her hands run back down Holly’s back. She let her hands come to rest on Holly’s hips, “Do you need anything?”

Holly shook her head and closed her eyes, resting her forehead on Gail’s. She let out a deep sigh and licked her lips, “I’m just really glad you’re here.”

“I’m sorry that I had to leave,” Gail touched Holly’s face, gently brushing away some hair in Holly’s face.

“Oh, sorry,” Traci muttered from the bottom of the stairs, “I’m just going to go grab Leo.”

“You’re leaving?” Gail asked her.

Traci walked up the stairs, “Yeah. Steve is going to come over until Dex comes to pick Leo up for school.” Traci hugged Gail, “Call me when you’re ready to go back in. I think I’m going to go back after Leo goes to school. I can’t just sit around.”

“Me either,” Gail told her. “Take care.”

Traci stepped up one more step and hugged Holly, “Thank you for letting us come over.”

“Any time,” Holly smiled.

Traci woke up her son and walked with him down the stairs. Steve ushered them out, offering a wave to Gail and Holly who were walking down the stairs to join the group.

“Do you want us to leave?” Andy asked Holly who was looking around in the kitchen for something to eat.

Holly shook her head, “No. Of course not.” She stood up and looked at Gail who hadn’t left her side since she arrived. “Are you tired? Or hungry?”

“Both,” Gail nodded. She looked over at Andy, “Why don’t you order some food or something?”

Andy agreed, “Okay. Anything in particular?”

Holly opened a drawer and took out a stack of take-out menus, “I don’t know which of these places deliver at this hour.”

“McNally can check,” Gail walked up behind Holly. She used her arms and her body to push Holly toward the door, “I think that I need to take a shower and I need you to show me where the towels are.”

Holly didn’t really know what was happening, but she just went with it. She allowed Gail to pull her upstairs and into the bedroom. When they got there, Holly moved to the bathroom while Gail closed the door.

“The towels are in here,” Holly explained, opening a cabinet in the bathroom. She pulled out a fluffy light blue towel and offered it to Gail.

Gail smiled slyly and took the towel, “Thanks.”

Holly tilted her head to the side, “What?”

She slowly pulled off Holly’s glasses. Holly was a little stunned, but stood still. Gail folded up Holly’s glasses and looked down at them, remembering when Holly was taken into the operating room. All she had to hold on to was Holly’s glasses.

But now she had the real thing in front of her. She put the glasses down behind the sink. She leaned forward and pinned Holly against the counter. She put her hands on the counter on both sides of her. Holly smiled and moved her hands to rest on the sides of Gail’s neck. “Are you really going to take a shower?”

“Yeah,” Gail placed a baiting kiss on Holly’s lips, “Eventually.” Gail leaned her torso forward against Holly’s, but didn’t kiss her again. She teasingly offered her lips before backing away when Holly went for it.

Holly bit her bottom lip. She loved this playful side of Gail. She’d seen it many times over their friendship and it was just as fun now as it was then. She smiled and went in for another kiss. Gail pulled away again with a coy smile.

“You’re in a good mood for being tired, stinky, and hungry,” Holly commented, pushing her arms up Gail’s shoulders, crossing her wrists behind Gail’s neck.

“Excuse me?” Gail quirked an eyebrow, “Stinky?”

“I was going to ask if you had to chase after a suspect through a dumpster, but that seemed rude,” Holly smirked.

Gail laughed and shook her head. Gail dipped her head down and kissed the side of Holly’s neck, “You’re so freaking charming. Does it work on all the dead people in the morgue?”

“You’d be surprised,” Holly grinned and tilted her head so that Gail had better access to her neck.

Gail kissed the underside of Holly’s jaw and then her lips, “I actually think I am going to take a shower, but…” Gail moved so that she could look at Holly’s face, “Can you stay in the bedroom, please?”

Holly nodded, “Yeah, of course.” She brushed Gail’s bangs out of her eyes, “Do you need something to wear when you get out?”

“I don’t know,” Gail pretended to be deep in thought, “Do you have anything that isn’t fleece?”

Holly rolled her eyes and squirmed out from between Gail and the counter. Gail just laughed as Holly walked out before she started the shower. Gail didn’t close the door to the bathroom when she got into the shower and Holly didn’t really notice. She laid down on her bed and that had been made so that Leo could sleep on it, and tucked her hands under her pillow.

Holly mused about how weird it was that she had an apartment full of people, but with Gail she felt like she was in their own world. Someone was out there possibly trying to kill them and she never felt safer. Holly smiled and rolled her face into her pillow. She hadn’t been this giddy in a long time.

When she heard the shower turn off, Holly went to her drawers and grabbed a plain long sleeved shirt and some cotton shorts. She was careful not to look inside the bathroom when she placed the clothes on the counter. Then she returned to the bed, facing away from the bathroom door.

She watched the sun start to light up the sky. She knew her sleeping schedule was completely screwed after her stay in the hospital, but she was okay with it as long as it synced up with Gail’s.

Holly felt the bed behind her dip down, but didn’t move. Gail laid next to Holly on her back with her hands folded on her stomach. She had put on the clothes Holly provided and braided her hair in the bathroom. Gail lulled her head over toward Holly and said to the back of her head, “Be honest, you have a backpack that matches this shirt don’t you?”

Holly rolled onto her back and looked over at Gail. She didn’t say anything. She just rolled onto her side facing Gail and kissed her cheek. Gail smiled, softening. She dropped her sarcastic front and snuggled into Holly who wrapped her long arms around Gail.

Gail settled her head on Holly’s chest and relaxed in her safe place.

“What do you say we get something to eat and then we take a nap?” Holly asked.

“That sounds great,” Gail answered, but didn’t move.

Holly wasn’t in a hurry to move either. She languidly rubbed up and down Gail’s back. Gail’s hand was laid on Holly’s stomach. She looked down at it and watched her thumb stroke Holly’s stomach through her shirt. “Tell me something.”

The request was so soft and earnest that Holly smiled just as soft and earnestly. She took a deep breath and thought it over. “When I was a kid, I had a puppy named Mister.”

“Mister?” Gail chuckled.

“I was five,” Holly gently ran her fingers over Gail’s hair, careful not to mess up the damp braid, “I just though there were a lot of adult men in the world named Mister.”

Gail smiled and moved her head up to the pillow next to Holly’s. She was careful of Holly’s injured arm. No matter how much Holly claimed to be healed, Gail saw her get shot and wouldn’t get over it anytime soon. “How come you never talk about your family? I mean, I tell you all about my overbearing mom and hopeless brother.”

“I don’t think your brother is hopeless,” Holly grinned. “He escorted Traci and Leo home. I think that’s a good start.” Holly’s smile faded as that train of thought died away. She licked her lips and turned her head to look at Gail, “I don’t really have a family. Not in the traditional sense anyway.”

“Oh,” Gail breathed. “I…I’m sorry.”

Holly shook her head, “You don’t have to be sorry.”

“Can I…ask what happened?” Gail asked, unsure how to proceed.

Holly looked up at the ceiling, “I really only know what I was told. According to my file, I was taken out of the home when I was four months old because of the physical abuse and neglect of an older brother that I apparently have somewhere. I was placed with four amazing foster parents and one pair of foster parents who caught me making out with a girl in my bedroom and threw me out.”

Gail wasn’t sure what to say. Her heart broke for Holly and she was enraged at people who would do that to a young Holly. “That’s terrible.”

“I knew foster kids that had it a lot worse,” Holly shook her head. “I was lucky.”

Gail kissed Holly softly, trying to draw away the pain that may or may not be there. She wanted to be strong for Holly. She was a police officer and it was her job to protect people. She wanted desperately to protect Holly.

Holly placed her head on the border of Gail’s hair, just leaving it there while she thought over her life. In all honesty, it wasn’t that bad. She had had a great education at the insistence of her foster families. She was only moved when her first foster father became ill. Even then her relocation was voluntary.

“Are you hungry?” Gail finally asked, knowing that she had pushed their conversation into an uncomfortable area.

“I could eat,” Holly smoothed out Gail’s hair, “Are you?”

Gail nodded against Holly’s chest.

Holly waited for Gail to sit up before she could. Gail slid onto her feel, but stopped Holly from standing. She took her hands, pressing their palms together and held her eyes. “Will you tell me if you start to feel uncomfortable?”

Holly slipped her fingers between Gail’s, “Yeah.”

“Promise me,” Gail stated a little more forcefully than she meant to. She just needed Holly to confide in her and she was resorting to the only way she knew how.

Holly blinked. She bit her lip and studied Gail’s face. She swallowed and nodded, “I promise.”

Gail helped Holly stand up and then pulled her into her arms. She didn’t know what else to do. She just wanted Holly near her. She was scared and she was angry. She didn’t want anything to happen to Holly. She just wanted Holly to be happy. She wanted to save Holly, but she was starting to doubt that she was enough.


	9. Chapter 9

Gail stuck close to Holly when they went to get the food. When they sat at the table, Gail scooted her chair closer to Holly’s than necessary. She didn’t know how, but she knew that she needed to be close in order to protect Holly – from Ford, from getting injured, from loud noises, from everything.

Gail could tell that Holly was putting up a decent front. At the very least, it was fooling all of the other officers. But Gail could see the pain in Holly’s eyes. There was fear and there was anxiety. So Gail put her arm on the back of Holly’s chair in an effort to keep everyone away from Holly. She wanted to especially protect behind Holly because she jumped minutely when Oliver accidentally brushed against her back.

Gail’s phone vibrated on the table and she opened up the text with her arm still around Holly. She smiled when she found good news from Dov, “Chloe woke up.”

“That’s great,” Andy commented. She was happy that something good was happening. It had been a stagnant day which always put every on edge.

Gail turned to Holly. Holly adjusted her glasses and smiled tersely, “See? We’re all okay.” She wasn’t entirely sure if she was trying to convince herself or Gail more.

“I think I’m going to go see her,” Andy stood from the table after she was done eating.

“I’ll come with you,” Nick stood as well. He followed Andy into the kitchen with his dirty plate.

Since everyone was starting to leave, Sam ruffled his hair on the couch, “I think I’m going to head out too. Get some sleep or something.”

Marlo agreed to go with him. They all thanked Holly and left after cleaning up their messes. Nick swept the kitchen, while Andy and Marlo did the dishes, not wanting to leave Holly with any kind of mess. Oliver and Celery picked up all the trash before they made their way back to their apartment.

“Do you want to go to the hospital?” Holly asked Gail after she locked the door behind the retreating officers.

Gail shook her head, “You owe me a nap.”

Holly smiled. She was glad that Gail didn’t want to leave. She wouldn’t have stopped her, but she felt more comfortable with Gail than with anyone else. Holly took Gail’s hand and went up the stairs.

“If you don’t mind,” Holly closed the door to her bedroom, “I think I want to take a shower.”

“Thank god,” Gail flopped down on the bed, “You were starting to smell like ten year old swamp bones.”

Holly smiled at the mention of their first case together. She paused in the doorway of the bathroom and looked over her shoulder at Gail. Gail was smiling back at her, coyly. Holly shook her head and walked into the bathroom, not closing the door all the way.

She pulled one of Holly’s pillows to her chest. She laid on her side and buried her face it in when she heard the shower turn on. She took the moment to regroup. She wanted to be solid for Holly. After a few deep breaths, she rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling, thinking about what she could do for Holly. She was worried about Holly’s panic attacks and what would happen if they weren’t treated by a professional. She decided that after their nap, she would approach Holly about seeing the division psychologist.

Gail tried to think of ways to find Abe Ford to get this whole mess all over with. She wasn’t complaining about staying with Holly, but she didn’t want Holly to get sick of her so early in the relationship. She felt safe enough in the apartment not to really worry about Ford getting them there, but she knew eventually Holly would want to go back to work or go out or something. They couldn’t stay hiding in the apartment forever.

As Gail was laying on the bed thinking, Holly emerged from the bathroom in nothing but a towel. Her hair hung damp around her shoulders. Gail rolled back onto her side and watched Holly move to her closet. She watched Holly’s impossibly long legs flex as she stood on her toes to grab a t-shirt off of the top shelf. Holly walked out of the closet and caught Gail watching her. Gail blushed, but Holly grinned.

She walked to her dresser and got out some panties. She pulled the panties on under the towel and then pulled the t-shirt on without giving Gail a peek at anything. Holly started toweling her hair as she walked back into the bathroom, “Do you need some tea or anything?”

Gail stretched across the bed, “No. Just a nap.”

Holly came out of the bathroom without the towel. Her eyes held Gail’s as she walked to the bed. She crawled into bed, climbing over Gail to get to her side. She made sure to pause as she was hovering over Gail and drop a kiss on her lips.

Gail slipped her arm under Holly’s head and rested her free hand on her Holly’s panty clad hip. Holly laid on her side and softly ran her fingers over Gail’s cheek. “Thanks for staying.”

Gail smiled softly, “You couldn’t have stopped me.” A few months ago she would have gagged on those words, but there was something about Holly that made her say what she was thinking, no matter how sappy.

Holly inched her head forward and brushed her lips against Gail’s. Gail reacted slowly. She kept the kiss calm and sweet. Gail bent her arm that was under Holly’s head and buried her hand in Holly’s hair. Her hand on Holly’s hip, moved up Holly’s side, dragging her t-shirt up with it. Her fingers lightly caressed Holly’s bare skin, still warm from the shower.

It was kind of a new experience for Gail. She had made out with people in the bed and she’d kissed women before, but never like this. Gail was struck by the gentle curves that Holly had. She loved the soft skin under her fingers. Kissing Holly like this was different than any other experience she had. It was new and it was beautiful.

Gail felt Holly slide her fingers across her jaw, back to the back of her neck, pulling her into a deeper kiss. Holly’s other hand gathered Gail’s shirt and used it to pull Gail’s body closer. Gail moved with the pull and let her legs tangle with Holly’s.

“I thought you were tired,” Holly mumbled, knowing that the more Gail’s hand ventured up, the farther she would want this make-out session to go. She wasn’t sure now was the best time for their first time. She wasn’t sure that Gail was ready.

Gail hummed against Holly’s lips, “Are you complaining?”

“Of course not,” Holly grinned.

Gail gave Holly a parting peck before resting her head on the pillow. She looked over Holly’s face, her eyes coming to rest in Holly’s gaze. “We should just go to Niagara. Get out of here and stay for a few days, until everything has blown over here.”

Holly knew that Gail wouldn’t leave, knowing that her fellow officers were still in the line of fire, but it was nice to think about. “Yeah. Play some blackjack, see some shows, massages,” Holly daydreamed.

“Drink a lot and try to talk Dov into going over the falls in a trashcan,” Gail smiled mischievously.

“Something tells me you speak from experience,” Holly loved that glint in Gail’s eye.

Gail shrugged, dismissively, “It’s probably a good thing Oliver knew some of the Niagara cops because Dov was going to do it.”

Holly traced Gail’s jaw with her thumb, “Which hotel do you usually stay at?”

Gail opened her mouth to answer, but a phone rang. She sat up and looked around, spotting Holly’s phone on the nightstand. She picked it up and handed it to Holly. Holly looked at who it was before answering, “Oh hey Marlo…she’s right here…okay.” Holly immediately frowned at the rushed tone in Marlo’s voice and handed the phone to Gail.

Gail put the phone to her ear, curious as to what was happening, “Marlo?”

“The security guard at Holly’s building just called me,” Marlo explained not wasting any time, “Ford just tried to get into the building.”

Gail flew out of the bed. “How long ago?” Gail moved to the nightstand and opened the drawer. She pulled out her gun, checking the magazine before jamming it back into the gun, and then pulled the slide back.

“About five minutes,” Marlo explained, “He called me the second Ford left the building. I already called Andy. She’s going to call the division. I’m on my way over.”

“Okay,” Gail looked at the open bedroom door listening for any sound. She pointed the gun at the ground, clicked the safety off, and moved the phone to her other ear.

“Gail, what’s going on?” Holly asked from the bed. She was sitting up on her knees trying to glean what was happening form Gail’s side of the conversation.

Gail ignored Holly for the moment, focusing on Marlo, “I’m going to clear the apartment. We’ve been upstairs for a while. Call this phone back when you get here.”

Marlo agreed and hung up. Gail walked back to the bed and handed the phone to Holly. “Ford just tried to get into the building, but the security guard wouldn’t let him in. He called Marlo and she’s on her way with a bunch of officers. I’m going to go clear the apartment.”

Fear crossed Holly’s face in many different shades. She swallowed and stood up off of the bed, looking around for some pants. She grabbed some grey cotton shorts out of the top drawer and pulled them on.

Gail checked the bedroom door and fond that there wasn’t a lock on it. There wasn’t a way for Holly to lock herself in. Gail took a deep breath. “Stay up here. I’ll be right back.”

“Gail, I-” Holly felt a lump build in her throat. She couldn’t finish her sentence.

Gail looked back at Holly while she was in the doorway, “It’ll be okay. I’ll be right back.”

Holly just dumbly nodded and watched Gail disappear out the door.

Gail checked Holly’s home office first. It was predictably empty. One of them would have noticed Ford lumbering through the hallway, past the bedroom door. She slowly moved down the stairs, her gun leading the way. Nothing seemed out of place, except for the door which was cracked open. Gail’s heart started beating quickly and adrenaline filled her veins.

Gail tried to figure out how to get the best angle on the apartment so that she could protect the staircase and clear out the downstairs. Gail peeked through the pass-through, finding the kitchen empty. Then she checked behind the couch and under the table on her way to the front door. She closed the door and locked it, checking the stairs behind her to make sure that Holly was protected.

Then she went through the kitchen and into the utility closet finding it empty. She moved back to the stairs, quickly ascending to make sure that Holly was still alone upstairs. When she appeared in the doorway of the bedroom, Holly was sitting on the bed, worrying her bottom lip with her phone in her hands.

Gail was conflicted as to what to tell Holly. She decided to just go for the truth, “The door was open, but there’s no one downstairs.”

Holly swallowed, not looking up at Gail, “What do we do now?” Her voice was shaking, but forcibly strong.

“What do you want to do?” Gail asked. “We can stay here or we can leave.”

Holly shook her head, “I’m going to have to differ to your expertise.”

Gail clicked the safety on her gun and sat down next to Holly. “The other officers will be here soon. I think we should stay put until they get here.”

“I need a drink,” Holly finally looked over at Gail.

Gail nodded, seeing the fear in Holly’s eyes. She could tell that Holly was trying to hide it, but she wasn’t hiding it very well. They both walked together down to the kitchen and Holly got some water. Gail lingered near the front door, listening for any movement outside.

She knew that she should probably clear the hallway outside of the apartment door, but she couldn’t leave Holly alone in the apartment.

Holly, for her part, was trying to keep together. She knew that there was danger for both her and Gail, and she could feel it. It was creeping through every bone in her body and there was no way to stop it. She knew that she wasn’t trained for this. She wasn’t trained for the danger. She was trained for puzzles and there seemed to be very few pieces laying in front of her.

Holly’s phone rang on the counter next to the water she hadn’t actually touched. It startled her, but she grabbed it and answered, “Hello?”

“Hey Holly,” Andy said, “We’re downstairs with a few other officers. They’re searching the block. Are you guys okay up there?”

“Yeah,” Holly walked out of the kitchen and found Gail, pacing near the door, “We’re fine.” Holly relayed to Gail that the officers were downstairs.

“Can I talk to her?” Gail asked Holly.

Holly handed over the phone and watched Gail stop walking to listen to Andy. “Hang on.” Gail put the phone on speaker so that Holly could hear too. “Go on.”

“The door to the service elevator was forced open and we found an external door to the stairwell that was also opened. Both doors are rigged with an alarm,” Andy paused, “But the alarm wires were cut.”

“Wouldn’t they have had to been cut from the inside?” Holly asked.

Andy was quiet. The she took a deep breath, “Yeah. I’m going to take some officers and clear the stairs all the way up.” Andy said something to someone around her and then moved her attention back to Holly and Gail, “We have vests for you two that we’re bringing up. Sargent Best want to bring you two-” There was the start of a commotion downstairs. Andy started yelling, “Everybody out!”

Gail grabbed the phone and turned the speaker off, putting it to her ear, “Andy what’s happening!”

“There’s a smoke everywhere,” Andy coughed, “You’ve gotta get Holly out of there.”

A second later the smoke alarms in the building went off everywhere. Holly gasped because the sudden noise scared her. She immediately looked to Gail for direction.

“We gotta get out of here,” Gail took Holly’s hand and pulled her out the door. Holly’s bare feet padded behind Gail’s as they moved quickly through the building. The other building’s occupants started flooding out of their apartments toward the stairs. Gail and Holly joined the mass moving toward the stairs at the opposite end of the hallway.

As they moved down the first flight, a man in front of them stumbled and fell down a few stairs. Both Holly and Gail moved to help him up. He was one of Holly’s neighbors who recognized her and thanked her for stopping. She helped him to his feet while Gail looked around them. Another one of Holly’s neighbors stopped to help while people from the higher floors rushed past them.

Gail leaned over the rail and looked down to the ground floor. The smoke was rising. Gail put the phone to her ear, “McNally, we need officers at the door on the ground floor in case Ford is trying to flush us out.”

“We’re on the way,” Andy answered. Andy gathered as many officers as she could and took the down the sidewalk and around to the back of the building.

“Let’s move,” Gail instructed Holly and her neighbors. The injured man managed to start moving down the stairs on his own. Gail grabbed Holly’s hand and they started descending down the stairs more quickly than before.

When they reached the ground floor, the short hallway the lead from the stairs to the outside was flooded with smoke. No one could really see in front of them. As they moved, Gail kicked something on the floor. She looked down and saw a metal canister pouring smoke out of one end.

“They’re just smoke grenades,” Gail looked up as she moved out of the doorway. As she crossed the threshold of the door, she felt Holly’s hand being ripped out of her own. Gail turned around, “Holly!” People kept pushing Gail out the door and away from where she had lost Holly. Between the people and the smoke, she couldn’t see past an arm’s length in front of her, “Holly!”

As soon as Andy spotted Gail she ran up to her, “Where’s Holly?”

“I had her hand, but it slipped out,” Gail started moving back into the building, “Get out of the way! Police! Move your ass!” Gail pushed her way back inside, her gun in her hand. She could see the last of the residents moving down the stairs a few flights up. “Holly!” Gail could barely see around her so she looked at the floor. She picked up the smoke grenade and threw it out the door, stopping the spread of smoke inside. Andy saw a few other smoke grenades and kicked them outside as well.

As the smoke started to clear, she searched the faces of everyone coming back down the stairs as they rushed past her. None of them were Holly. Gail ran back out the door and looked around. She grabbed the first officer she recognized by the vest, “Chris, have you see Holly?!”

Chris shook his head. “Wasn’t she with you?

Gail ran back into the stairwell, looking up the stairs to find that no one was left going up or coming down. She ran past the stairs and to the doorway to the first floor. She looked down the long hallway and found it empty. There was only a second’s hesitation before Gail lead Andy and Chris down the hallway. They quickly swept the apartments and on the sixth one, they found that the window had been broken out.

“There’s a smoke grenade,” Chris bent down and picked up the unused smoke grenade next to the door of the apartment.

Gail quickly made her way toward the window to look out when Andy grabbed her arm, “Gail!”

Gail stopped cold. She turned and looked at Andy who was pointing down. Gail’s eyes shot down where her shin was a few centimeters from a trip wire. Chris grabbed the radio on his shoulder, “We need the bomb squad to apartment 113.”

Gail carefully stepped over the trip wire onto the couch that was pushed against the window. Her bare foot was sliced open by some glass on the couch, but she ignored the pain while she was looking outside. “It’s an alley.” She looked down both sides of the alley for any trace of Holly, but couldn’t find any. The frigid air seemed to be trying to push her inside. Gail carefully stepped down with Andy’s help.

Andy pulled the radio out of her back pocket and called for a search of the alley next to the building and all streets leading away from it. Then she patted Gail’s back, “We’ll find her.”

Gail gritted her teeth. She grabbed the smoke grenade out of Chris’s hand and threw it at the wall across the hallway, leaving a dent. Then she swatted a vase off the table in the apartment, sending it crashing against the wall. She made a promise to Holly. She was supposed to protect Holly and she failed. Holly was gone and she had no idea where.


	10. Chapter 10

Holly was freezing. Her hair was still damp from her shower and her cotton shorts and t-shirt were no match for a Canadian cold front. The leather seats against her bare skin didn’t help at all. She closed her eyes to regain her bearings. She was holding hands with Gail, walking out of the smoke when someone grabbed her arm. She didn’t have time to react before she was pulled into the first floor hallway and into an apartment. The door was shut. She was handcuffed behind her back and gagged. The she saw Ford use a crowbar to break out a window. He pushed her halfway out the window, little leftover shards of glass still in the sill shallowly cutting her stomach. Then he climbed out and pulled her the rest of the way out. He carried her to a waiting car and put her in the backseat, buckling her handcuffed hands in.

He disappeared for about half a minute before getting into the car and driving off.

Holly’s glasses were lost in the fray, but she could see well enough to know they were in an older car and it stank of old cigarettes. She tried to move around, but was restricted by the seatbelt holding her in.

She knew that she wasn’t going to get out of the situation alive if she didn’t keep her head so she squashed down the panic creeping up her spine and breathed in through her nose.

After wriggling around, the gag slid down her chin. She swallowed, taking a minute to gather words. “Where are you taking me?” Holly asked.

Ford’s answer sounded like a growl, “We’re going to see him.”

+=+=+=+

Gail couldn’t stop moving. She was pacing through the station. She couldn’t sit still. She looked around her at all the people milling around, trying to coordinate, but they were slow. They were too slow.

Gail went to the locker room and grabbed her bulletproof vest. After she put it on, she was clipping her gun and badge her to belt when Andy walked in.

“What are you doing?” Andy asked, looking over Gail’s get up.

Gail slid her phone into her back pocket, “I’m not going to stand around here waiting for them to talk about how they’re going to find Holly.”

“They’re not just standing around, “ Andy tried to talk Gail out of whatever vigilante type crusade she was about to go on. She had already seen one officer go down with the Ford family. She didn’t want Gail to fall too. “There are officers at Ford’s house and at his shop. We’re going to find Holly.”

Gail set her jaw and squared off with Andy, “I promised her that nothing would happen to her. I promised her that everything would be okay.” Andy saw tears line Gail’s bottom eyelashes. Gail forced herself not to cry and said to Andy, “I lied. I messed up and now I’m going to make it right.”

“Gail, all of the detectives are working on this,” Andy tried to explain, “Every officer is looking out for her.”

Gail didn’t have a response to that so she just walked out of the locker room with Andy on her tail. “Gail, where are you-” She stopped when she saw Steve walk up to them.

Steve was serious and didn’t stop his march to the front door of the station. “The security guard at the morgue called in. Ford walked Holly in through the bay doors at gunpoint.” He looked at Andy and then Gail, “Gail you’re with me.”

=+=+=+=

Holly’s hands were shaking as she picked up the clipboard from her desk to find out where Kevin Ford’s body was. It was only partially because of the gun pointed at her. She was still barefooted, in shorts, and a t-shirt. It was frigid outside and it was always chilly in the morgue.

“Where is he?!” Ford knocked over the small metal stand of instruments next to the autopsy table. “You’re stalling!”

“I-I’m not,” Holly stuttered, although she was. When they walked in, Holly distracted Ford as they passed through the security window. At the risk of behind shot again, Holly took off running past the window. Ford ran and easily caught up with her when she slowed down past the window. That run, earned her a pistol whip that reopened the gash she got from her encounter with the first Ford brother.

She wiped the blood from her forehead and then wiped it on her shirt. She had been wiping it in the same place on her shirt. From the stain on her shirt, she could tell that she needed to get something on it before she passed out.

Holly put down the clipboard and walked to the wall of doors. She pulled open the correct one and pulled the body drawer out. Resting on top of it was a dark body bag. Ford walked over to the opposite side of the drawer. Holly could see that he was nervous. She had to ask, “Are you sure about this?” She paused and saw that Ford had not looked up from the body bag. “He’s been cut open and sewn back together. It’s not pretty.”

“I just want to see him,” Ford’s voice shook as he spoke.

Holly didn’t understand why. He was the one that killed his brother with a hunting rifle. Holly swallowed and moved her hand to the zipper, “I have to warn you,” Holly spoke like she was speaking to a family about to make an identification of an unidentified body, “There is a- a shocking hole in his head.”

“I know,” Ford looked across the drawer at Holly. “I did it.” The way he said it was full of contempt and anger. Holly thought it was probably directed inward. She couldn’t imagine the man who shot his own brother to want to see him.

Holly pulled back the zipper revealing Kevin Ford. Holly looked up at the older Ford brother and watched him look over his brother’s face. Abe nodded and then looked away, “Where is he going after this?”

“Do you have any family, close relatives?” Holly asked, zipping the body bag back up.

Abe shook his head, “It’s just us.”

“Um,” Holly wasn’t sure how to word what she was about to say as she pushed the drawer back in and closed the door, “Since he’ll have no – he’ll go to the county cemetery.”

Abe nodded and adjusted the handgun in his hand. He turned back at Holly, “I did this to him. He didn’t want to go after 15 Division, but I talked him into it. So I had to save him from prison. He wouldn’t have survived prison.”

Holly put her arms around herself, trying to warm up. She figured that she could grab her lab coat without much protest from Ford so she moved back to her desk. He watched her carefully, but looked away when he saw her pick up her lab coat. He knew that she had been shivering.

Holly shrugged on her lab coat and folded the sides across her front, trying to warm up her core. Then she knelt down to open the bottom drawer of her desk.”

“What are you doing?!” Ford barked at her, pointing the gun at her and advancing quickly.

Holly put her hands up, “I was getting the first aid kit.”

Ford kept the gun on her and paused. He looked her over, “Slowly.”

Holly opened the drawer slowly and pulled out a first aid kit. She set it on her desk and opened it carefully. She didn’t have a mirror so she had to use her sense of touch to bandage the bleeding wound on her head. She took her time, hoping that help would arrive soon.

As she was closing the first aid kit, she heard a yell, “Freeze!”

Ford’s aim flew over toward the bay hallway door where Carl, the security guard was pointing a taser. Holly jumped in front of Ford so that he couldn’t shoot Carl without shooting her. She held Abe Ford’s eyes as she said, “Get out of here Carl. I’m okay. We’re okay. Just get out.”

Carl kept his taser pointed up, however now it was pointed at Holly’s back. “Get out of the way Dr. Stewart.”

Ford looked from Holly, then over her shoulder at Carl. “You better listen to her. Get out.” He grabbed Holly and used her as she shield, pointing the gun at Carl.

“Don’t shoot him,” Holly begged, grasping at the arm across her neck, “He’s just the morgue security guard.” She found Carl’s terrified eyes and yelled, “Get out!”

Carl quickly bolted out the door.

“We have to leave now,” Ford set his jaw. “There’s more work to be done.” He let go of Holly and pulled the handcuffs she had on earlier out of his pocket, “Put your hands behind your back.”

Holly complied with her head hung. She didn’t like being a hostage. “What are you going to do with me?”

“That all depends on how you behave,” he told her, clicking the cuffs shut around her wrists.

+=+=+=+

Gail and Steve arrived at the morgue with a small army of officers behind them, lights and sirens blazing. They were met with Carl, the security guard running away from the morgue toward them. Gail and Steve got out of the car and Carl ran to Steve, “He’s got Dr. Stewart in her office. I tried to help her, but I think I – I may have made it worse.”

Gail and Steve shared a look over the car. Gail drew her gun, “There needs to be officers on the ground floor. The morgue is in the basement. Those are the two ways out.” She looked to Carl, “I need your security badge.”

Steve divided the officers quickly because Gail was already moving toward the bay door. He led a group of officer who ran to catch up with her. She used Carl’s badge to open the bay door and then watched an officer clear the security room before moving silently down the hallway.

Steve swallowed and watched the cold, stone glare on Gail’s face. He now knew for sure that something was going on with Gail and Holly. He feared for anyone got in her way of saving Holly now.

“Flashbang?” one of the SWAT officers behind Gail whispered.

Gail looked over at her brother as she stopped outside the door to the morgue. She knew it may set off one of Holly’s panic attacks, but she also knew it was probably the safest way to enter the room for everyone involved. She nodded and then stood to the side while the SWAT officer opened the door a crack and tossed the grenade in.

Gail gripped her gun tighter and when the bang went off , she flew through the door her gun in front of her. Steve was right behind her covering her back. The rest of the officer’s fanned out through the door.

Gail’s eyes searched every inch of the room. Holly and Ford weren’t anywhere to be found. There was a knocked over tray, but that was the only thing that was out of place. She looked to the outside door when officer’s poured in. The lead for the other team pulled up when he saw Gail, “We swept the lounge and the stairs.” He shook his head. “There’s a team going upstairs to check.”

Andy’s voice crackled over the radio, “The receptionist said that a woman in a lab coat and shorts, with a bandage on her head, walked out with an older man about five minutes ago.”

“Damn it,” Gail yelled and turned over the autopsy table. “We’re too late.” Her put one hand on her waist and one hand over her mouth. She tried to think about how to find Holly. She remembered something that didn’t seem important when she saw it, but now it meant everything.

“There’s a car outside in the bay,” Gail blurted out. “If it’s Ford’s car, they’re on foot. They couldn’t have gotten far.”

Steve grabbed two officers, “Go run the plates on the car in the loading bay.” Then his eyes fell to his sister, “Let’s go.”

They both ran up the stairs to the ground floor and then out the front door. Andy was standing out front asking people what they saw. Gail walked up to her just as Andy asked, “Did you see which way they went?”

A scrawny man in scrubs scratched his head and then pointed down the street, “It was so weird. Dr. Stewart wasn’t wearing any shoes. Or like pants. With her lab coat over her shoulders you know, like a cape. Is she okay?”

Gail looked up and down the street before taking off in the direction that the man pointed in. Steve trotted to catch up to her. “Why would he take Holly this way?” Steve asked.

Gail inhaled and looked around. “I don’t know. The bus station is the other way. He could be heading to the highway. Hijack a car and get out of town,” She spotted a street vendor across the road and stepped into the crosswalk so that she could ask him if he’d seen Holly, “But someone has to notice that Holly is not wearing shoes. She’s not dressed for the weather out here.” As she explained her thoughts to her brother, she started to become upset. Holly was definitely not dressed for the weather. She wasn’t wearing shoes and she was injured again. So many things could happen to Holly because of this man’s vendetta against 15.

Gail stopped in the middle of the road. “15 Division,” Gail stated, ignoring the horns of the cars that were stopped behind her, “He’s on his way to 15 Division.”

“To finish what his brother started,” Steve finished for Gail before they both took off running for their car.

=+=+=+=+

Holly sat, handcuffed and seat belted to the passenger’s seat of the car that Ford just hijacked. She had a hunch as to where they were going, so she decided to voice her thoughts, “We’re going back to the police station aren’t we?”

“Yup,” Ford nodded, “Those bastards ruined my life. They ruined my brother’s life. They made me kill him.”

“But you only have a handgun,” Holly shook her head. “You can’t possibly think that you’ll even get past the front desk.”

Ford spotted the police station as he pulled to a stop at a stop sign, “Well then you better hold on, because we’re going through it.”

Holly’s eyes got wide. She realized that she couldn’t really hold onto anything because her hands were cuffed behind her back. But it was too late as Ford gunned the engine and aimed for the glass front doors of 15 Division.


	11. Chapter 11

“A car just ran through the front doors of 15,” an officer’s voice sounded over the radio, “I repeat, a car just drove into 15.”

Gail turned on the sirens as Steve drove the lead of a caravan of police cars speeding back to the police station.

Another voice crackled over the radio. “Abe Ford! It’s Abe Ford. He’s firing!”

“Hold on,” Steve told Gail and accelerated the car over the curb and up the sidewalk toward 15 Division.

Gail searched the building as they careened toward it. She couldn’t see the car immediately and wondered how far they got into the building Ford drove. She could see smoke flowing out the gaping hole in the front of the building. The building’s glass had resisted shatter, some parts breaking in large sheets, crumpled on the ground.

Steve grabbed the shotgun before the car had stopped completely. Gail’s door flew open and her boots crunched down on the glass before Steve put the car in park. They both readied their weapons and surveyed the entrance.

Andy, Nick, Traci, and a small army of other officers gathered behind them. Gail turned back toward the group, “Traci, take a group to the back and go in the processing bay.” Traci nodded and grabbed a few officers going around the back. “Everyone else create a perimeter. No one leaves. Call the paramedics.”

“Andy, on me,” Gail said and turned toward Steve. Andy moved to her spot in the assault line behind Gail. Nick covered the back and Steve led them into the building. The glass crunched and crackled under their feet. They could hear yelling and loud banging. The smoke started to become thicker.

Steve peeked around the corner and saw the destruction. Ford had driven the car through the front doors, through the front hallway, through the doors to the bullpen, and barreled through a row of desks before the car stopped, slamming into the wall under Sergeant Best’s office. There were two desks on the hood of the car and one on the roof. The smoke was coming out from under the crumpled hood of the car. Both of the doors to the car were open.

“Andy, Nick,” Gail whispered, “Go over the desk and through the back.”

Andy nodded to Gail and passed her and Steve to hop over the front desk as silently as possible.

Gail’s eyes searched every inch of the station as she and Steve moved along the wall toward the back of the building. Gail’s eyes felt on an officer trapped under the car. Her immediate instinct was to go over and help him, but she couldn’t. She had to flush Ford out before she could help anyone. The officer looked up at her and Steve. He gave them a solid nod and continued to just lie on the ground, under the car. He knew what needed to be done before he could be helped.

Steve kept the shotgun pointed in front of him as they moved toward the rear of the building. They had to walk around the car, but when they got to the dividing wall between what was visible to the public and the desks that couldn’t be seen through the glass doors, they found Andy and Nick waiting for them. “There are three people behind the front desk. When we go around this corner they’re going to run for the front door.”

Gail and Steve just nodded, continuing their slow movements into the back. Once they rounded the corner, they spotted Ford. He had an officer under his arm, using him as a human shield. There were a few other officers trying to talk him down.

Ford pointed his gun at the approaching officers and shot three times. They all ducked and retreated into the hallway where they could take cover.

Gail looked at her brother and then at Andy and Nick. She wasn’t sure what to do, but Steve started moving before she could say anything. He looked behind himself at Andy and Nick, pointing to the left. Andy and Nick nodded. They were going to flank Ford on both sides.

Of course flanking meant minimal cover. There were desks, but they were sparse and it would be hard to dive completely behind one if Ford started firing.

The officer that Ford had under his arm, reared forward and head-butted Ford in the face. Ford recoiled letting go of him and grabbing his nose. However, that didn’t give the officer enough time to get behind something because Ford pointed the gun at him and shot.

Steve and Gail saw that as their chance and ran forward. Steve yelled, “Drop the gun!”

Ford immediately shot at them, running toward the locker room. They both ducked behind a desk and leaned back against it. Gail was afraid to peek around the corner so she called, “McNally! Where is he?!”

“He went down the hallway,” Andy called back.

Steve and Gail left their cover and reconvened with Andy and Nick. They started their way down the hallway before they heard gunfire. They all ducked around the corners and looked at each other. Over the radio, they heard Traci frantically yelling, “An officer has been shot. We’re pinned in a transport bay. Ford said that the door is rigged with explosives.”

Gail took a deep breath and turned so that her back was against the wall. She scanned the area that they just came from, also looking up at all the elevated areas of the precinct. She was getting worried that she hadn’t seen Holly yet. As she turned back to the hallway, a metallic clanking noise sounded in front of them.

“Grenade!” Nick yelled. He grabbed Andy and pulled her as far away as he could. Steve and Gail ran away, diving behind some desks.  

Gail saw the flash of light before she heard the explosion. It pushed a few desks back and sent the one they were hiding behind topping over on top of them. The heavy desk knocked the air out of Gail, but she knew that it absorbed all of the shrapnel that would have done way more damage than the desk tipping over on them. Gail turned over and started pushing the desk up. Her chest hurt and she looked over at Steve who seemed to be having the same problem. Together they heaved the desk up enough for her to shimmy out from under it. Gail was on her hands and knees trying to gather the breath so that she could stand when the crunch of debris under a boot next to her made her freeze.

Steve looked up, from on his back, his legs still caught under the heavy desk and saw Ford standing over his sister with a gun pointed at her head. His heart stopped cold. He didn’t know where his gun went. It was knocked out of his hands in the explosion. Ford let out a sinister laugh and shook his head, “This has really been all too easy.”

When the sound of a gun went off, Steve felt like he was going to throw up. There was a rapid fire of bullets, but when Steve’s eyes caught up with his brain, he saw that Gail was still on her hands and knees, uninjured. He saw Ford bleeding from the top of his shoulder He frantically looked around, waving his gun out in front of them.

Steve looked up and saw a gun fly through the air at Ford, striking him in the chest. Ford pointed his gun in the direction of where the gun came from and started firing.

When she knew that Ford’s gun wasn’t pointed at her, Gail looked up. She spotted her gun and made a lunge for it. As she grabbed it, she rolled onto her back. She saw Ford jerk forward and blood spurt out the front of this chest  a half second before she started firing at him.

Ford’s body jerked forward and backwards as it had become riddled with bullets. Then, all at one, Ford’s body became still before limply falling onto the ground with a dull thud. Gail was breathing heavily with her gun still pointed at the area where Ford had been standing when the slide was stuck back on the top of her gun. She didn’t even realize that she shot an entire magazine worth of bullets into the man that almost killed her.

Gail finally lowered her gun and saw Andy and Nick standing behind where Ford was, both with their guns in front of them. Gail pushed up off of the ground. She saw that her brother was still under the desk and lifted it up until Steve could scoot out from under it.

Nick got on his radio, “All clear. Ford is down.” Andy knelt down to help the officer who was shot. Luckily he only took a bullet to his vest and was playing dead to stay alive.

“Who shot first?” Steve asked, looking at where the gun had been thrown from. Everyone’s eyes joined his and they saw a pair of eyes peeking out from the doorway of the break room. Holly stepped fully into the doorway that had bullet holes on both sides of it. She looked a little stunned, but shook out of it when she saw everyone staring at her.

“Are- Are you guys okay?” Holly looked really unsure of herself. Her shirt was dirty, ripped, and bloody. There was a long gash down the side of her leg. There was a bandage on her hairline and her bare feet were dirty.

Gail dusted herself off and ran across the room to Holly as the paramedics, other officers, and the bomb squad came in swarmed the building. She ran to Holly and wrapped her arms around her. She didn’t care who was watching or what they thought. In the moment, she wasn’t a Peck. She was Gail holding a woman she was terrified that she may have lost.

“I love you,” Holly whispered, still in a daze. She clung to Gail, letting her eyes slide shut. She swallowed and thanked whatever god there may be that Gail was okay.

Gail nodded, tears in her eyes. She pulled back to look at Holly, “I love you too.” She kissed Holly. She savored the kiss, never ever wanting Holly out of her arms again. She could taste the salt of tears in the kiss. She wasn’t sure who was crying, but she wasn’t about to stop kissing Holly to find out.

When she felt Holly shiver under her hands, Gail pulled back. Gail looked Holly over and found a few worrisome areas. “You need to see the paramedics.”

Normally, Holly would protest a little, but she knew that she need to. She looked down at her bare feet and knew the bottoms of them were cut and probably had glass in them. She knew the gash on her leg needed to be taken care of as well as the one on her torso.

Gail noticed the small blood trail where she figured Holly had been hiding. It made her sick and it made her want to protect Holly all at once. Gail took a step next to Holly and scooped her up in her arms. Holly looped her arms around Gail’s neck, surprised as how easily Gail picked her up. In all honesty, Gail surprised herself too. It could be her concern or pure adrenaline, but she easily carried Holly out the front of the police station to the nearest unoccupied ambulance.

The paramedic watched, awed as Gail set Holly down on the floor of the ambulance with her legs dangling toward the asphalt. The paramedic grabbed a blanket and draped it over Holly’s shoulders before starting to assess what needed to be done.

“Are you okay?” Holly asked Gail. It was just a habit now, making sure that Gail was okay.

A smile toyed with Gail’s lips and shook her head. She didn’t mean no. She was just trying to sort everything out, shaking some nonessential thoughts about. She looked up at Holly, narrowing her eyes, “You saved my life.”

Holly didn’t know what to say. She still hadn’t gotten the hang of people thanking her for that. She winced when the paramedic pulled a shard of glass out of her foot. Her attention was redirected to her foot. She reached out for Gail and Gail stepped into it, taking Holly’s hand in both of her own. Then she sat down next to Holly. She put her arm around Holly’s shoulders trying to warm her up.

Gail looked back at the wreck of a police station. She didn’t know what was going to happen to it. The upper floors were okay, but the first floor where most of the officers worked was a mess.

When Holly dropped her head on her shoulder, Gail turned back to her. She could feel Holly squeezing her hand whenever the paramedic pulled out a piece of glass. Gail went over what just happened in her head. She smiled and then started laughing. Steve, Andy, and Nick walked over, wondering what Gail could possibly be laughing at.

Holly was interested as well. She picked up her head and looked questioningly at Gail. Gail smiled at her, “You threw the gun at him.”

Holly looked away slightly embarrassed. Then she looked back, “I’m sorry I’m not trained for situations like that. What else was I supposed to do?”

“No, that was great,” Gail grinned. She looked around her and saw her brother and Andy smiling. “You saved us.”

“Yeah,” Steve walked over to the ambulance and leaned back on the other side of Holly from his sister. “You are by far my favorite forensic pathologist I’ve ever worked with.”

Holly smiled, “Thanks.”

He patted Holly’s shoulder, “Thanks for saving my sister.” He shared a meaningful look over Holly’s shoulder with Gail before smiling at Holly.

“Always,” Holly nodded with a quiet finality to her statement.

Holly closed her eyes when a larger piece of glass was removed from her foot. She tried to bury her face in Gail’s neck. She had been in pain most of the day, but not the adrenaline was starting to wear off and the pain was worse than it had been before. The paramedic apologized. “I’m almost done. Then we’ll take a look at your abdomen.”

Everyone’s eyes fell to the bloody shirt barely hanging onto Holly’s torso. There was a line of blood about at Holly’s waist with a few tears in the fabric through it. There was a thicker line of blood going up the right side of the shirt. Holly closed the blanket around her, self-conscious about the injuries that she’d sustained, and still trying to put up a brave front for Gail, “It’s fine.”

Traci was directing the cordoning off of the broken glass and the crime scene. She could occasionally throw looks toward the group standing at the back of the ambulance. She knew the second Ford bother was dead. She just wanted to make sure that her fellow officers were still safe.

Frank arrived outside of the outer perimeter were media was gathering. They all rushed him, recognizing the white shirt meant that he was in a position of power. Frank ignored all the of media and ducked under the yellow crime scene tape that a uniformed officer lifted for him. He immediately walked up to the group gathered at the end of the ambulance. He waited for another ambulance to roar off with its siren blaring, carrying the officer that was run over to the hospital, before speaking. “What happened in there?” Frank asked them.

Andy jumped in, “Ford drove his car right through the front door. He opened fire and we went in the front while Traci took a team in the back, but he wired the back door with explosives so it was just us.” Andy gestured to the Doctor, “And Holly.”

“Are you alright Dr. Stewart?” Frank asked, disappointed that his efforts to keep her face were ineffective.

Holly nodded as the paramedic finished up taping up the gash on her leg and moved to her torso to examine the cuts on her stomach from the window in the apartment building.

“I’m going to go help Traci,” Steve pushed off of the ambulance. He wanted to help her and he just wanted to be around her. He knew that things like this really made people want to be closer to the ones they love. He was just going to go with his feelings and say near Traci, just to know she was okay.

Frank put his hands in his pockets, “I’ll take all of your statements in a minute then you can get out of here.” He stopped an officer and got his extra notepad. “Let’s start with Dr. Stewart.”

Andy and Nick stepped away because they knew that when they took statements the person was supposed to be alone. But Gail didn’t budge. She wasn’t going to leave Holly and Frank seemed to know that. He nodded for Holly to proceed anyway.

“Where do I start?” Holly licked her lips.

Frank looked at Gail who had an unabashed look of warning on her face directed toward him. She didn’t want him to push Holly at all. Frank nodded subtly to her then poised his pen to right, “Start when you were separated from Officer Peck at your apartment building.”

Holly nodded and explained how she was forced out of the window. Then how she was forced at gunpoint to show Abe Ford his brother’s body. She told him what Ford had told her about why he shot his brother. Then she explained how she was handcuffed to the seat and when she realized that he was going to crash into the police station with the car, she braced herself with her feet and grabbed onto the seatbelt with the hands behind her back. After they crashed through the second window, the car slowed significantly and barely tapped into the wall under Frank’s office.

Ford jumped out and Holly managed to unbuckle herself, open the car door, and found handcuff keys in one of the desks. She managed to get out of them and snuck into the locker room where she broke open a locker with a fire extinguisher and found a gun. After loading it, she tried to leave the building, but saw Ford coming back toward where she was so she ducked into the break room. She crouched by the door waiting for Ford to come in or to be rescued.

“Then I heard the explosion and saw him point his gun at Gail so I shot,” Holly inhaled deeply, going through the pain of reliving the moment and the disinfectant that paramedic was applying to her stomach. She smiled sheepishly and looked at Gail, “Then I threw the gun at him.”

Gail grinned and kissed Holly. Then she turned to Frank, “Can I give mine so I can take her home?”

Frank nodded and turned the page. After Gail’s statement, he thanked them both and told Gail that he would call her later after they figured out what they were going to do.

“Steve!” a familiar voice caused Gail to look up from Holly’s injuries. She saw her mother flash her badge at the officer standing guard outside the police tape that was isolating the entire block. She ran right to Steve who was standing with Traci next to the sign in front of the broken building. She hugged him and then said something to him. He pointed to the ambulance where Gail and Holly were.

Gail’s mom walked right up to them and pulled Gail into her arms, “I’m so glad you’re alright.”

“Mom, I’m fine,” Gail put her hands on her mom’s arms.

Her mom touched the vest on Gail’s chest and took a deep breath, “Are you sure?” She turned Gail around, “No bullet wounds?”

Gail shook her head. She ripped the Velcro open on her shoulders and her side and took the vest off. “See? I’m fine.” She set the vest next to Holly and turned back to her mother.

Holly was listening to the conversation while holding her ripped shirt up for the paramedic to tend to her wounds. She didn’t want to intrude of the mother-daughter time so she just listened, but didn’t watch. The paramedic told her that he was done with her stomach, but wanted to look at the cut on her arm. Holly dropped her shirt and showed the paramedic the cut she got on the outside of her left wrist from having the handcuffs on during the crashes.

As she was examining her other wrist, something caught her eye. Holly noticed some writing on the vest that Gail was wearing. On the inside, written in silver marker was Gail’s handwriting. She didn’t have a chance to read it because Gail turned toward her.

“Mom, I’m fine,” Gail kept insisting. She moved back toward Holly, “Holly saved me.” Gail paused, “And Steve.”

Holly looked up at the sound of her name. Gail didn’t hesitate to make introductions, “Holly, this is my mom, Superintendent Elaine Peck. Mom, this is Dr. Holly Stewart. She’s a forensic pathologist over at the morgue. She saved the lives of both of your children. She is also my girlfriend.”

Elaine took a moment to process in information Gail just laid out, but then she smiled at Holly, “It’s so good to finally meet you.” She looked at the paramedic hop into the back of the ambulance to get some more gauze for Holly. She looked Holly over one time before moving in for a gentle hug. “Thank you for taking care of my babies.”

“It’s nice to meet you too,” Holly looked over Elaine’s shoulder at Gail who just looked bewildered.

“I hope I didn’t hurt you at all,” Elaine pulled back and surveyed Holly, “You seem to have a lot of injuries.”

“They’re not too bad,” Holly forced a smile.

The paramedic appeared over her shoulder, “But you should probably go to the hospital to check for internal injuries. And get some stiches on that abdomen. Probably your leg too.”

Holly nodded. She sighed, unhappy that she had to return to the hospital. She started to offer the blanket back to the paramedic who told her to keep it. The setting sun wasn’t doing anything to warm Holly up.

“I’ll drive you ladies to the hospital,” Elaine offered. She reached into her purse over her shoulder and looked down, attempting to locate her keys.

Gail made wide eyes at Holly who was just as lost as she was. Holly had only heard horror stories about Elaine Peck and this woman in front of her just seemed like a concerned maternal figure.

Holly decided it was time to start moving, gingerly stepping out of the ambulance onto the bandages on the bottoms of her feet.

Gail turned around, and bent her knees, “Get on.”

Holly smiled, grabbed the vest, and delicately hopped onto Gail’s back, holding onto her blanket over her back. She leaned onto Gail and kissed her cheek, “Thank you.”

Gail wanted to roll her eyes, but something in her just couldn’t do it. She just smiled and followed her mom to her car. Gail could feel Holly shivering against her and quickly set her in the backseat. She got in the back with Holly and turned on the seat warmers. “How have you not frozen to death?”

“Adrenaline,” Holly put her seatbelt on and leaned into Gail. “It’s wearing off though.”

Gail put her arms around Holly. She rested her cheek on top of Holly’s head, “Mom, can you turn the heat on high back here.”

Her mom complied and then took off in the direction of the hospital.

Holly called Megan ahead of time and told her that they were coming in. She promised to meet them at the door. Elaine pulled up under the awning where Megan was waiting for Holly with a wheelchair.

Megan shook her head as she and Gail helped Holly into the chair, “My surgical residency doesn’t look so bad now does it?”

“Nope. Still looks boring,” Holly stated. After they both shared a smile, Holly added, “Do you think we could go with liquid stitches so I can shower?”

Megan pushed Holly into the hospital, “You know I am way over qualified to fix your boo-boos.”

“Yeah, I also know that you wouldn’t have passed your boards if it wasn’t for me,” Holly quipped, “I think you owe me a little skin adhesive.”

Megan shook her head and looked over at Gail as they walked right into a room full of beds. “I don’t know how you put up with her.”

Once at the bed, Megan and Gail helped Holly onto it. Holly laid back on the pillow and looked at her arms. She could feel a little pain in her shoulders from the car accident when she tried not to fly through the windshield. She took stock of her body, finally able to completely rest for the first time in a long time. Her shoulders hurt. Her leg stung. Every time she moved her feet they really hurt her. It still felt like her feet were bleeding.

Holly sighed heavily. She was suddenly overcome by an overwhelming sense of exhaustion.

Gail’s phone rang in her pocket and she pulled it out. She looked at the screen. A few weeks ago she wouldn’t have even considered accepting a call from Andy, but now after everything she needed to. “Hey, McNally.”

“Hey,” Andy answered. “I’m still at the crime scene – the, um, I’m still at 15, but I’m going to head home in about an hour. I just wanted to let you know that if you need anything, or Holly needs anything you can call me. We’re all going out for drinks tomorrow. To celebrate, or something.” Andy rambled on, still trying to process what just happened, “Anyway, how is Holly?”

“She’s…” Gail looked down at Holly and rested her hand on Holly’s forehead, careful not to brush the bandage on Holly’s forehead. She smiled, pushing Holly’s hair back and out of her face. Holly met her eyes and gave her a slow smile. “She’s okay. We’re at the hospital right now and then we’re going to home to and sleep it off.” Gail paused, “See you tomorrow. And um, thanks, Andy.”

When she hung up, Holly reached up and took Gail’s hand off of her forehead and held it in her own.

Megan pulled up a stool and lifted up Holly’s shirt. She frowned, “Did you suffer any impact trauma?”

Holly looked down at her torso. “No. I don’t think so.” Holly thought it over, “Maybe a little.” She did actually unceremoniously fall out of the window of her apartment building. She also vaguely remembered being slammed into the car door as Ford swerved in the hallway of 15 Division.

Megan pulled off the gauze that the paramedic had put on her abdomen, “Alright, we’re going straight to radiology after this.” She looked up at Holly, this time no teasing her voice, “Just to make sure.”

Gail watched Megan use liquid stitches to close up the cut on Holly’s side. Megan decided that she needed to put actual stitches in Holly’s leg. She called to radiology to make sure they had an MRI suite ready and then checked Holly’s forehead.

“What’s this from?” Megan asked.

Holly nervously looked at Gail and purposely looked away when she answered, “I got pistol whipped.”

Megan was all out of witty remarks after seeing the depth of the injuries that her friend sustained. Gail had also felt her mood fall. Holly was still shivering and she too had seen the extent of Holly’s wounds.

A nurse offered to take Holly to the CT suite, but Megan insisted on going with them. Gail stood behind Megan while she worked the computers. Elaine decided to stay in the waiting room.

Megan helped Holly change into a gown, but it wasn’t doing anything to keep her warm. Megan pressed the button on the intercom, “Just thirty seconds, Holl. Then we’ll get you some real clothes.”

Holly just nodded and tried to still her body as much as she could through deep breathing. She heard the machine whirl quietly and knew she was almost done. She counted backwards from thirty with her eyes closed.

“Got it,” Megan stated. She shut the machine down and went with Gail to pull Holly out of the machine.

Holly sat up and Megan handed her some scrubs with a plastic on top of them for her old clothes. “I’ll process your scans and be right out. You can hang out in the doctor’s lounge if you want.”

Holly nodded, “Thanks.”

Gail didn’t call her mom to tell her they were going to be in the doctor’s lounge. She just really wanted some alone time with Holly. Holly gingerly stepped out of the private doctor bathroom in the scrubs. She knew Gail would have carried her to the couch in the lounge, but Holly didn’t want to hurt Gail.

Gail opened her arms to Holly and Holly fell into her.

“We’ll get out of here soon,” Gail tucked Holly’s head under her chin and pulled a blanket she stole from a supply closet onto Holly. “We’ll go to your apartment and get into bed. Then we can - ”

Holly interrupted Gail, “I-I-I can’t go back there. Not tonight.”

Gail nodded, understanding how it could be incredibly hard for Holly to go back to a place where she thought was safe; a place where she was abducted from. “Okay. We can go to my place.” She smoothed out Holly’s hair and kissed the top of her head.

Gail clenched her jaw, angry at herself for letting this happen to Holly. She had promised to protect her. She had promised to keep her safe and not let Abe Ford come near her. She had broken every promise that she made to Holly.

But in the midst of all that anger, Gail was thankful. She was so, so thankful that Holly was back in her arms. She was thankful that they didn’t have any more deranged brothers to deal with. She rested her chin gently on top of Holly’s head and closed her eyes, feeling tears squeeze out from between her eyelids. She was so, so thankful that she had Holly back in her arms.


	12. Chapter 12

There was a soft knock on the door before it opened and Megan walked in. She had a folder in her hand and a smile on her face, “You’re all clear, Holly.”

“Thank you,” Holly smiled back. She used her wheelchair and the side of the couch to stand up and hug Megan. Gail kind of hovered behind her, waiting to catch her if she fell.

“No problem,” Megan closed her eyes, “But next time I see you, I don’t want it to be in a hospital.” She pulled away and looked at Gail who stood as well, then back to Holly, “Maybe we could double sometime. I’ll bring boyfriend of the week and we’ll close down a bar.”

“Sounds great,” Holly nodded.

Gail helped Holly into the wheelchair and then pushed her through the hospital. Gail would occasionally put her hands on Holly. When they got in the elevator, Gail rested both of her hands on Holly’s shoulders, just needing to touch her. They stopped and got Elaine as they made their way to the exit. Elaine went ahead of them to get her car, while Gail stopped Holly right outside of the hospital doors.

“Are you hungry?” Gail asked. “Do you need anything?”

Holly looked out over the dark parking lot and shook her head. She wondered what was in the shadows between the cars. She took a deep breath and looked up at Gail, “I just want to go lay down.”

Gail nodded, completely understanding.

When Elaine pulled up, Holly got into the car by herself and Gail pushed the wheelchair back into the hospital. Once she was in the backseat next to Holly, Gail told her mom to take them to her apartment. Gail wondered if Chris was going to be there, or if he was at the hospital with Dov. Gail looked up at the hospital and wondered if she should have gone to see Dov and Chloe.

She decided that she could call Dov later. If anything happened, Chris would call her, but at the moment she needed to take care of Holly. She kept her arms around Holly and kissed her cheek. She was just so damn happy that Holly was okay.

Holly smiled and leaned into the kiss.

When they got to Gail’s apartment, Elaine left them alone with the promise that she’d call the next day. Holly didn’t want Gail to carry her up the stairs so they took each stair slowly. Gail had her arm around Holly’s waist, trying to take as much of Holly’s weight as she could.

Gail unlocked the door and pushed it open.

“Hello?” she heard Chris call.

“It’s just me,” Gail answered, dropping her vest by the front door. “And Holly.”

Chris jumped up to help. He moved to the door and tried to figure out how he could help. “Are you okay?” he asked Holly.

Holly nodded. She limped to the back of the couch, “I really just want to shower.”

Gail walked Holly to the bathroom and found her a clean towel. She looked Holly over once again before leaving her in the bathroom. She didn’t close the door all the way, still feeling antsy about being in a different room than Holly. She knew that a person couldn’t fit through the bathroom window, but it didn’t stop her from listening for it opening.

She relaxed when the shower turned on. Gail sighed heavily and went to the kitchen to start the kettle.

“What happened out there?” Chris asked. “She looks rough.”

Gail didn’t turn around. She looked down at the kettle with the fire lit under it. She didn’t really want to recount the story. “She saved my life.” Gail ducked her head, “After I…I let Ford have her. He literally took her out of my hand.”

“It wasn’t your fault,” Chris assured her.

Gail shook her head and turned around, “I promised her that nothing would happen.”

Chris walked up next to her and got three mugs out of the cupboard. He set them on the counter and turned to Gail, “You know how it is with this job. You can’t predict things like this.”

Gail turned toward him. “I was born for this job. I was bred for this job. I have been training for this job since I was only enough to read street signs. I should have known.”

“There was no way you could have known,” Chris put his hand on her shoulder.

The kettle whistled and Gail flipped off the fire. She got down the tea and pulled out three teabags. She inhaled and exhaled. She tried to remember how Holly liked her tea. She had watched Holly make tea at least a hundred times, but for some reason she couldn’t remember.

“Damn it,” Gail dropped the tea bag into the mug and pushed off of the counter. She walked out of the kitchen, into the living room.

In the shower, Holly had her eyes closed, her face under the spray. The hot water felt good on her skin. She felt like she was finally defrosting. She focused most on warming up her torso, knowing that that was the most important.

She tried to ignore the sting of the shampoo that was rinsed out of her hair as it rushed between her feet toward the drain. She hadn’t actually examined her feet, but she was sure that the injuries could have been a lot worse. She checked the bandage on her leg to make sure it was still watertight. Then she looked at her torso. Bruises had started to form around the wounds. She knew that was going to happen and it would probably make both of the injuries to her abdomen look a lot worse than they were.

Holly closed her eyes again and lost herself in the water. The water ran over her ears blocking out all sounds. With her eyes closed, no sound, and her body enveloped in the warm cascade, Holly found herself back in 15 Division. She was back in the break room, terrified and hiding.

She heard the explosion again and waited a minute to peek out the door. She saw the gun pointed at Gail and everything went black.

Holly gasped in the shower, not realizing that she had been holding her breath. She braced herself on the wall and tried to catch her breath. The entire day had been terrifying, but having a gun to her head was not as terrifying as seeing one pointed at Gail’s.

Chris had managed to talk Gail down after they finished making the tea. Gail remembered how Holly took her tea and fixed it up for her. Chris shrugged on his coat and walked to the door. He knelt down and picked up Gail’s vest and belt, moving them to the couch. Dov always complained when Gail left her stuff by the door, so moving it was just second nature. “I’ll see you later.” Chris stepped up to Gail and pulled her into a hug.

“Let me know how Dov is doing,” Gail hold him, speaking against his chest.

Chris promised and left the apartment.

“Gail,” Holly called from the bathroom.

The shower was still on when Gail skidded to a halt in the doorway, “What’s wrong?”

Holly smiled softly, poking her head out of the shower. “Nothing. I just don’t have anything to wear.”

“Oh,” Gail nodded, suddenly feeling sheepish for running to the bathroom. “I’ll get you something.”

“Thank you,” Holly said, ducking back into the shower.

Gail quickly picked out some of her warmest clothes and set them on the counter for Holly to change into. Gail sat on the couch waiting for Holly to emerge from the shower. She kept her eye on the bathroom door what wasn’t completely closed. When it opened, she averted her eyes, hoping that Holly didn’t think she was trying to see her naked or anything.

“Do you think I’ll get the shirt back from evidence?” Holly joked, “I got it in when I went camping in Alberta.” She walked right over to the couch and sat down. She smiled and pointed to the tea on the coffee table, “Is that for me?”

Gail nodded. “Are you warm now?”

Holly nodded, “Very much so.”

“How are your feet?” Gail watched Holly take a sip of her tea.

Holly looked down at them and shrugged, “They still hurt. I mean, they’re going to for a few days, but it’s not as bad as it could have been.”

Gail wanted to touch Holly, but she wasn’t really sure how. However, before she could put her arm around Holly, she saw Holly pick up the vest on the couch next to her. She flipped it inside out and saw the words that Gail had written inside of her vest.

“Holly,” Gail said softly, not sure if she wanted Holly to read it or not. When Holly looked up at her, she knew that she had probably already read it all in the time it took her to have her own internal debate.

Holly slowly licked her lips and then bit her bottom lip, “When did you write this?”

“Right before the security guard called us from the morgue,” Gail answered in a raspy voice. “I just-” She tried to play it off and shrug, “Last words you know.”

Holly looked at the vest in her hands and read over the words again. _Holly – I love you. I’m sorry that I let you down and that it took me so long to finally ~~say~~ tell you. You make me feel like it’s okay to be me. Thank you._

“I was a really emotional ti-” Gail started, but Holly kissed her, interrupting the words coming out of her mouth. Holly moved deftly into Gail’s lap, straddling her. Gail lost herself in the kiss. She had been scared that she’d never see Holly again and that it was her fault. She still felt that it was her fault, but she had Holly. She placed her hands on the sides of Holly’s neck, pulling her deeper into the kiss, hoping that she could just be lost in this passion with Holly for a little while. She just wanted to exist in a bubble with Holly.

Holly broke the make out session. Gail had lost track of time but it was all too short for her. Holly closed her eyes and touched her forehead with Gail’s. “I love you too.”

Gail swallowed and kept her eyes closed as Holly dismounted her. When Holly settled onto the corner of the couch, Gail looked over at her, “Still wanna go to Niagara?”

Holly smiled lazily, “Yeah, sure.” Holly was pretty much down for anything at that point. And honestly getting out of town would make her feel better, maybe a little safer. She tucked her legs under her, “Are you allowed to leave though?”

“I don’t see why not,” Gail shrugged, “I’ll probably be put on administrative leave until the investigation is over which will take a few days because it’s a huge case even though it’s straight up cut and dry. I don’t have anywhere better to be.”

“Neither do I,” Holly smiled. She looked around, “If I had my laptop, I’d see what kind of deal I could get. I presented at a conference a few months ago and accidentally won a free weekend.”

“How do you accidentally win a free weekend?” Gail asked.

Holly grinned, “You have a few too many drinks, flirt with a cocktail waitress, and set your drink on the spin button of the slot machine.”

“And you didn’t use your free weekend with the cocktail waitress?” Gail quirked an eyebrow.

Holly could see that a hint of jealousy in Gail’s eyes. It made her smile wider. She decided to not call Gail out on it because truthfully, she liked it a little bit. She took a deep breath, “I don’t have my phone or my computer or anything.”

Gail knew that Holly didn’t want to go to her apartment to get it so she offered, “I can call Andy or Traci or Chris. They can go get some of your stuff. If they’re going to get some of your clothes, I would send Traci because Chris has the fashion sense of a lumberjack and Andy will steal all your fleece.”

Holly shrugged, “It doesn’t matter. I just need my phone and my purse. And my glasses,” She looked away from Gail and admitted, “I can’t go back there. Not yet.”

“I get it,” Gail moved across the couch toward Holly and put her arms around her. “Do you want to leave tonight or tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow,” Holly stood up. She turned to Gail, “Right now, we should get some sleep.”

Gail stood as well, turning around so that Holly could hop up on her back. Holly did so gracefully, only wincing slightly at the pain in her foot as she left the ground. “You know, if you keep doing this, I’m going to end up hurting your back.”

“In case you don’t remember, I carried you out of 15,” Gail stated, easily walking with Holly on her back to her bedroom.

She resisted the urge to throw Holly onto the bed, not wanting to rip any of Holly’s stitches. Holly looked around the room as she crawled to the head of the bed. “I like your room.”

“Well it’s not as nice as yours,” Gail shucked off her pants, looking around as well, “But maybe someday I’ll be a grown up and live on my own.” She picked up her discarded pants and pulled her phone out of the pocket. She plugged it in on the nightstand and laid down in the bed.

Holly snuggled into the pillow and closed her eyes. Gail took that as her sign to turn off the light and pull the blankets up around both of them.

Once they were in the darkness, Gail automatically reached for Holly. She moved herself closer to Holly. She didn’t want to suffocate her, but she just wanted to feel her body heat – feel her breathing. Gail rested her hand on Holly’s hip, remembering in excruciating detail exactly where Holly was injured.

“You know, I’ve been…through some stuff too,” Gail offered softly. She moved her thumb across Holly’s skin. “If you want to talk, I-I’ve…” Once again words were failing Gail.

“You were that kidnapping case about a year and a half ago,” Holly stated. It finally clicked for her.

“Yeah,” Gail swallowed remembering that horrendous event. “I-I’m not saying that they were the same or anything. I just – sometimes it’s easier to talk to people who can relate.” She paused and when Holly didn’t say anything Gail asked, “You knew about that case?”

“Everyone knew about that case,” Holly moved a little closer to Gail, “It was my first week and half the office was at some kind of convention in New York. I did my first solo autopsy on that woman they found in the park while they were looking at you. I was in my office for forty-eight hours straight.”

There was something dopey and sappy about Gail’s thought about how Holly was trying to save her even before they met. She wanted to hate herself for having that thought, but she couldn’t. Gail returned to her previous point, “But so you know, if you want to talk.”

“Okay,” Holly chewed her lip for a moment in thought. “Thanks.”

Honestly, Gail was expecting something completely different. She expected Holly to say something about what happened. Anything really about what happened.

Gail felt Holly’s lips on hers, softly and hesitantly in the dark. Gail kissed back, not rushing it this time. She just enjoyed the feeling that it gave her.

+=+=+=+

Holly woke with a start. Her heart was hammering and she could feel tears on her face. She tried to calm herself and catch her breath so she closed her eyes. When she opened them again, she saw the sun was falling through the window onto the foot of the bed. It was a small sliver of light because of the curtains, but it was enough for Holly to know that she had been asleep for a while. She looked in the bed next to her and found Gail still sleeping soundly.

Holly slipped out of the bed, onto her feet that didn’t hurt as bad, but still hurt to walk on. She silently walked out of the room and into the bathroom to wash her face. She couldn’t see herself too well without her glasses, but she could tell that after the cold water, it didn’t look like she had been crying in her sleep.

She wished that she had had a nightmare or something, but while she was sleeping, she was remembering what happened. She remembered in vivid detail everything that happened from the second she was ripped away from Gail to the second that she saw the gun pointed at her. Holly remembered the smell of the car and the feel of the handcuffs on her wrists.

Holly looked down at her wrists to see that the bruising was still apparent. She rubbed her face and straightened out her hair. She looked around in the drawers and found an unopened toothbrush. After a quick brush and then another run through her hair, Holly padded to the living room. She could hear movement and after a momentary panic, talked herself into the logical assumption that it was Chris or Dov.

When she stepped around the corner toward the kitchen, she saw that Chris was drinking orange juice out of the carton. He was wearing jeans and a coat, with brown boots. He spotted Holly immediately and stopped drinking, “Good morning. How do you feel?”

Holly put her arms around herself, “Better. How’s Chloe?”

“She woke up,” Chris smiled, “She woke up and asked for Dov so he’s happy. She’s got a few more days in the hospital, but,” he nodded, “she’ll be okay.”

“Good,” Holly smiled back, “I’m glad.”

“Nice shirt,” Chris gestured to the dark blue thermal Henley that was hanging on Holly.

Holly walked to the refrigerator, being struck with the sudden realization that she was starving, “Thanks. It’s Gail’s. I haven’t been back to my apartment.”

Chris finished off the orange juice, “Do you want me to go grab some of your stuff?” He smirked, “You know the night after Frank and Noelle’s wedding, she came back here and asked me what was wrong with her clothes and told me that you said you wouldn’t share her clothes,” Chris’s grin turned into a full blown smile, “She was all flustered.”

Holly chuckled, “You don’t have to. You’re either about to leave or just getting back. I can’t ask you to.”

“I just got back so it’s no problem,” Chris shrugged, “But Andy is going to come over in a little if you want me to call her I can. I bet she’d grab some of your stuff.”

“If she says it’s no trouble,” Holly picked up a carton of milk and had to hold it close to her face to see what it said. She sighed and put it back, “At the very least, I need my extra glasses.”

“Yeah I found your other ones in the stairwell of your apartment,” Chris offered, taking out his phone, “They’re in evidence somewhere.”

“No telling when I’ll get those back,” Holly gave up on the refrigerator and moved to the stove to start the kettle.

Gail was thrust into the waking world by her phone ringing. She blindly reached for it, hoping that it didn’t wake up Holly. She answered, “What.”

“Good morning, Gail,” Frank chuckled, “I’m sorry to wake you. I thought I was going to get your voicemail, but there are some administrative things I need you to come in to do later today at the department headquarters. You also have to schedule you’re appointment with the division psychologist. You know, standard procedure to clear you for duty again.”

Gail groaned, “Fine.”

“And I can’t get a hold of Dr. Stewart,” Frank stated. “Is she still with you?”

“Yes, sir,” Gail rolled over, to wake Holly up, but found the bed empty. Panic took over her body and she dropped, the phone and jumped out of bed. She ran down the hallway, “Holly?”

She stopped in the doorway to the living room. She saw Holly was sitting on the couch, talking with Chris while the TV was playing the news on mute. Gail took a few deep breaths and then walked back to the bedroom to get her phone. Frank was still on the line asking, “Hello? Peck?”

“I’m sorry,” Gail sighed, “She’s here. She doesn’t have her phone.”

“She needs to come in as well,” Frank stated.

“Okay,” Gail accepted his statement and then hung up. She dropped her phone on the bed and then shuffled to the bathroom. After the quick version of her morning routine, she walked into the living room and sat between Holly and Chris.

“Good morning,” Holly smiled, unsure if she was allowed to kiss Gail in front of Chris. She settled for opening her arms to Gail who fell into them. Gail squirmed down until her head was in Holly’s lap and her feet were in Chris’s.

“Frank wants us to go in today to the admin building,” Gail looked up at Holly.

Holly nodded slowly, accepting that she was just going to have to show up. “I’ve never been there before.”

“I grew up there,” Gail huffed, “It’s boring.”

The front door opened and all three people looked over the back of the couch. Gail sat up straight when she saw it was Andy and Nick.

“We brought breakfast,” Andy announced and set down a pink box with a cardboard tray of coffees.

Holly stood up and Nick walked over to her. He had a bag in his hand and said, “You don’t have to get up.” He set the duffle bag down next to the couch and stuck his hand in his jacket pocket. He pulled out a set of glasses and handed them to Holly.

She accepted them with a smile, “Thank you so much.” She put them on and blinked a few times, “So much better.”

Andy picked up a coffee and walked over the couch with it, handing it to Holly.

“Why didn’t anyone bringing me coffee?” Gail asked, looking longingly over at the coffee.

Nick went to get the tray as Andy said, “If we watched the paramedic pull glass out of your feet then I’d bring it to you.” Nick handed it to Gail anyway and Gail stuck her tongue out at Andy.

Andy grabbed the pastries and put them on the coffee table. Then she sat down in the armchair and Nick leaned on the side of the chair. “What are you guys doing today?”

“Going to be interviewed or do paperwork or something,” Gail shrugged, sipping her coffee. “And booking my therapy session with Dr. Crazy Happy.”

“I already got one on Tuesday at ten,” Andy pointed out.

“After that though,” Gail added watching Holly go through all her messages on her phone that she dug out of her bag, “We’re going to Niagara. Get out of town, you know.”

“That sounds like a good idea,” Andy smiled, “Especially because Chloe is awake now. Everything worked out.”

“She woke up?” Gail turned around and looked at Chris.

Chris nodded. “About three this morning.”

Gail smiled, “That’s great.”

Holly looked up at Andy, “How’s Marlo?”

Andy crossed her arms and took a breath, “She’s um, she’s still being really hard on herself, but I think she’s okay. I think she just needs a break.” Andy paused. Then she looked at Gail, “Would you be mad if we all kind of crashed your weekend in Niagara?”

Gail looked over at Holly checking with her. Holly just shrugged. Gail shook her head, “No. Go ahead.”

“We’re going to Niagara?” Nick asked Andy with a questioning smile.

Andy grinned, “Well I’m going. I don’t know where you’ll be.” She poked his stomach.

“Sounds fun,” Nick kissed her.

“Chris?” Gail asked, her eyes moving her to roommate.

Chris smirked, “Oh yeah, I’ve always wanted to go on a couples weekend by myself.” He shook his head, “You guys go ahead. I really just want to lounge around here for a while. I might go home and see my mom.”

“Let me see what I can do about the rooms,” Holly grabbed her phone and carefully stood. She slowly walked toward the bedroom.

Andy nodded after her, “How’s she doing?”

“She’s okay I think,” Gail looked after her, “She won’t talk about anything though.” Gail looked over her shoulder at the hallway and then turned around. “Maybe getting her out of town is a good idea.” She paused, “Maybe it’s a bad idea. Maybe she needs to stay and talk to a professional or something.”

“She’s a doctor,” Chris offered, “If she didn’t think she could go, don’t you think she’d say something?”

“I don’t know,” Gail sighed and leaned on the back of the couch, “I brought up the trip. She might think I really want to or something.” She stood up, “Do we have any Bailey’s?”

“I got us two rooms for free and one at a discount,” Holly stepped back into the room.

“How did you manage that?” Andy smiled, surprised.

Holly smirked, “Well, the cocktail waitress I flirted with last time I was there, is now a manager.” She looked over at Gail who was staring at her, with a mixture of bewildered and jealous. Holly grinned, “I never got her number because she’s straight, but I did look at a thing she had on her neck which turned out to be a benign tumor.”

“You drunk diagnose?” Gail asked, still not quite believing it.

Holly put her hands out, “I’m that good.” She smiled at the group, “Are we flying or driving?”

“I say we drive,” Nick offered, “It’s a really great drive this time of year.”

Everyone just kind of agreed. Andy called Marlo and everyone made a plan to go to the station, fill out their paperwork that they needed to and meet at Sam’s apartment to head out. 


	13. Chapter 13

Gail had Andy drop her and Holly off at the door to the administration building before going to park. She knew that Holly was trying her best to put on a brave face, but she could see the grimace on Holly’s face every time she took a step.

“I called my mom and she got them to move your interview to the closest interview room,” Gail walked next to Holly, trying not to just make her sit down.

“You didn’t have to do that,” Holly tucked some hair behind her ear. She looked down at her sneakers, glad that they were always comfortable. However, it still hurt when she walked. Luckily her jeans didn’t rub on the bandage over her stitches. The shirt she was wearing wasn’t something she usually wore, but Andy grabbed it for her and it hung loosely on her, the light purple material soft over her bruises.

Gail didn’t respond. She knew she didn’t have to. She didn’t have to whip out her family’s last name and her mother’s power to get what she wanted done, but she did it. For Holly.

When they stopped outside of the door, Gail turned to Holly, “Call me if you need anything.”

Holly felt her phone in the pocket of her jacket. She nodded, “Thanks.”

“Good luck,” Gail waggled her eyebrows with a grin, before walking off.

Holly turned to the doorway that Gail dropped her off at. She knocked on the door and opened it when a voice inside called, “C’min.”

When she opened the door, she stepped in and found a table with two chairs on either side of it. One chair was occupied by a man with grey hair, wearing a white administration shirt. He stood when she stepped in and offered his hand to her, “Dr. Stewart?”

She nodded, “Yes. You can call me Holly.” She shook his hand.

“I’m Inspector Bill Peck,” he stated, sitting back down, “But you can call me Bill.”

Holly was in the middle of taking her jacket off when she registered what he had said. She quirked an eyebrow, “Like Gail and Steve Peck?”

He chuckled, “Yeah. Those would be my children.” He adjusted the camera on the table so that it was facing Holly as she sat down. “My wife has told me all about you and I would like to say, off the record, thank you for saving my baby girl.”

“Absolutely,” Holly nodded matter-of-factly, “I’d do it again if I had to.”

He picked up his notepad, “Normally, I don’t do these interviews, but SIU doesn’t have enough detectives at the moment to interview everyone that needs to be interviewed and I’m not allowed to interview Steve or Gail.”

“I understand,” Holly stated.

He set his notepad down, “Would you like some tea or some coffee before we get started?”

“Um, coffee, if it’s not too much trouble,” Holly asked. She needed a moment to compose herself. She was going to try to talk this out like it was a trial that she was testifying at, but just beginning to think about talking about what happened was getting her riled up.

Inspector Peck rose from the table, “It’s no trouble at all.” He stepped out of the room and returned with two cups of coffee. He set one down in front of Holly before extracting sugar, cream, and a wooden stirring stick out of his pocket.

“Thank you,” she said, starting to shake the sugar packets.

He sat down on the other side of the desk and did the same. Once they had both doctored their coffee and had a few sips, Inspector Peck asked, “Are you ready?”

Holly nodded silently. She was as ready as she was going to get.

For his part, Bill seemed to be just reading off questions written for him and writing down the answers. He could tell that her voice was starting to shake Holly as they neared the end of the questions so he slowed down and let her have more time between questions.

Her coffee was gone before the questions were over. She was thankful when Inspector Peck switched off the camera. He looked her over and asked, “Are you alright?”

Holly nodded. She looked into her empty cup, “I’m fine.”

“Your office wanted me to inform you that they’re going to suspend you, with pay, until the investigation is over,” he informed her, “Just to make sure that no one can accuse you of compromising future cases.”

Holly understood, but was disappointed. She figured the quicker she could start moving forward again, she quicker she could get over this incident.

“In the meantime, they want you to see our department psychologist,” he reached over the table and handed her a business card. “She won’t be the deciding vote, but she will have a say as to whether or not you’re fit to go back to work.”

“Thank you,” Holly took the card and looked at it in her hand. Then she slipped it into her jacket pocket. She stood up and remembered that all too familiar sting in her feet.

“I do hope that I’ll be seeing you around Holly,” Inspector Peck stood as well.

Holly picked up her jacket. She smiled at his kindness, “Me too. It was nice to meet you, Inspector.”

“Maybe next time it’ll be under better circumstances,” he walked around the table and put his hand on the collar of Holly’s jacket as she started to put it on.

Holly smiled as he helped her put her jacket on, much like Gail did earlier in the day.

They parted ways at the door and Holly walked out of the hallway. She spotted Steve hanging out in the hallway and he caught her eyes. Steve smiled, “Hey.”

“Hey,” Holly smiled back.

“Just finish your interview?” he asked, putting his hands in his pockets.

Holly nodded, “You?”

He shook his head, “I did mine last night. I’m waiting for Traci to finish up. We’re heading out of town after this.”

“Really?” Holly asked. “You’re not going to Niagara by chance are you?”

Steve shook his head, “Nah. We’re going to take Leo to North Bay to go camping.”

“Sounds fun,” Holly put her hands in the pockets of her jacket.

“You and Gail are going to Niagara?” Steve asked.

Holly nodded and ran a hand through her hair, “Along with a few other officers. Just blow off some steam, you know?”

Steve smiled, “Sounds fun.”

Holly pushed her glasses up on her head, “Hey, do you know who they’re bringing in to do the autopsy?”

Steve shook his head, “I think I heard something about one of the pathologists Montreal, but I don’t have a name.” He was a little curious as to why Holly wanted to know, so he just decided to ask.

“Just curious how quickly it was going to be done,” Holly looked away, down the hall and saw Andy walking toward them. “I just want him out of my morgue.”

Steve put his arms around Holly, “That makes sense. I’m sure he’ll be gone by the time you get back.”

Andy smiled when she neared them, “Hey, how’d it go?”

“I’m not sure,” Holly shrugged, “It was my first one.”

“Who did you get?” Andy asked, “It wasn’t Detective Mills was it? She’s terrifying.”

Holly shook her head, “No. It was Inspector Peck.”

“Oh Dad?” Steve asked with a wicked grin, “How did that go?”

“It was professional,” Holly straightened her back, “Why?”

Andy grinned, “You have already met both of Gail’s parents.”

Holly quirked an eyebrow and looked at Steve, “In a professional setting and last night Elaine just drove us to the hospital and to Gail’s apartment.”

“If it were up to Gail, no one she ever dated would meet our parents,” Steve took a deep breath. “But they’re not as terrible as she says.”

Holly didn’t really think much about Gail’s parents as being her parents. She was never really concerned with meeting them or her impression on them or how terrible Gail said they were. She just wanted to be around Gail. She didn’t really mind whoever was around her as well.

“Well, you did save both of their kids,” Andy softly patted Holly’s arm, “If that doesn’t make a good first impression, I don’t know what does.”

Nick wandered out of the hallway toward the group. He put his arm around Andy, “Are we just waiting for Gail?”

Andy nodded. “We could go get some tea across the street while we wait.”

Holly looked down at her sneakers and then back up at the group, “I’m just going to find somewhere to sit down.”

“Oh yeah,” Andy couldn’t believe that she forgot. She looked around, “I’ll go find you a chair.”

“I got it,” Steve put up his hand to stop her from walking off. He looked around for a moment and trotted down a hallway. He ducked into a room and came out with a desk chair. He put it behind Holly and let her sit down.

“Thank you,” Holly looked up at him.

He nodded. “No problem.” He pointed down the hallway, “Gail and I used to race desk chairs down that hallway.”

“Oh yeah?” Holly grinned, “Who won?”

Steve smirked, “Me, of course.”

“Liar,” Gail walked up behind him and punched him in the arm.

Steve winced, “I beat you every single time.”

Gail shook her head, “That’s crap and you know it.”

“That’s it,” Holly stood up and pulled the chair in front of herself, “I call rematch.”

Steve shook his head, “I can’t. Here? Now?”

Holly saw Andy and Nick snickering to each other. She grinned, looking between the Peck children, “Or are you chicken?”

It wasn’t two minutes later that Gail and Steve were sitting in desk chairs at the end of the hallway. Holly and Andy were standing at the opposite end of the hallway. Nick stood between the two racers. A few of the office workers gathered to watch on the sides of the hallway.

“Ready,” Nick put his arms up, “Set.” He dropped his arms, “Go!”

The race started and everyone laughed as Steve and Gail kicked at the ground, making the desk chairs fly down the hallway.

“Winner!” Andy called as Gail burst through the police tape finish line first.

Gail stood up and pointed to Steve, “Loser!”

Holly smiled, watching Gail laugh with her friends and her brother. She loved seeing Gail liked this. She was happy and smiling, like she didn’t have a care in the world.

“Alright, alright,” Andy broke up Gail’s gloating, “Let’s get out of there.”

“Yeah, there’s a poker table calling my name,” Nick agreed.

Gail looked around and for a second, she couldn’t see Holly. They actually drew quite a crowd and as she saw money exchanging hands, she spotted Holly leaning on the wall. Gail nervously offered a small smile. Holly smiled back.

When the crowd broke up, Andy, Nick, Holly, and Gail made their way out to Nick’s SUV. They all piled in and Nick took off driving.

“We have to stop for snacks. I need my cheese puffs,” Gail hit the back of Nick’s seat.

“We haven’t even left town yet,” Andy turned around in her seat.

Gail leaned back in her seat, “But I’m hungry.”

“We can hit that burger place outside of town,” Andy suggested. She turned farther around in her seat to look at Holly who was behind her, “Is that okay with you?”

Holly nodded, “Yeah.”

Andy smiled and turned around, “Awesome.”

Gail looked over at Holly who was looking out the window. She reached over and poked Holly’s arm. Holly turned around and looked at her, eyebrows raised in question.

“You okay?” Gail mouthed.

Holly nodded and smiled, “Yeah of course. I was just thinking.”

“Well don’t hurt yourself,” Gail sassed with a playful and hopeful grin.

Holly smiled wider, “I’ll try.”

After picking up Marlo and Sam, they stopped at the burger stand. Marlo, Nick, and Holly got out of the car to use the bathroom and get the food while the other three stayed in the car.

Andy looked all the way from the front seat to the third seat to Sam, “How’s that hole in your gut?”

Sam smirked, “It’s doing fine.”

Gail tuned out their conversation. She watched Holly walk back toward the car, carrying the drinks next to Marlo. Nick said something and both Holly and Marlo laughed. She watched Holly say something back and everyone laughed harder. She narrowed her eyes watching them.

Marlo opened the backseat door and dropped the bag of hamburgers on the seat next to Gail. She crawled over the seat and sat down next to Sam. Holly was in charge of sorting out the food. Gail was in charge of the French fries until she got caught eating them as she passed them out.

“No tomato,” Holly read off the top of the marked wrapped, “That must be you.” She handed it over to Gail.

Gail blinked, “How did you know that?”

“You’re allergic to tomatoes,” Holly went back to digging out the hamburgers from the bag.

Gail looked at the hamburger, “How do you know _that_?”

Holly shrugged, “You must have brought it up. We hang out a lot. We’ve had dinner before. We’ve had drinks. I’ve seen you try to do sports.”

“Oh my god, you got Gail to do sports?” Andy turned around in her seat.

“I said _try_ to do sports,” Holly pointed out.

“Holly,” Gail looked down at her food and moved everything around until she could hold everything. “I do want to remind you that you swore a blood oath that night to never speak of what happened and if you do I’d have to kill you in your sleep, and I was just starting to like you so I hope I don’t have to do that.”

Holly chuckled, knowing that Gail’s warning tone was all bark when it was in her direction. Holly looked at Andy and shrugged, “You heard the lady. Sorry.”

Andy chuckled, “I’ll find out somehow.”

As they drove along, they traded stories. Most of them were funny. Everyone knew that the purpose of this trip was to have a good time and move away from had happened with the Ford brothers.

About halfway there, Nick stopped at a scenic overlook at Marlo and Andy’s insistence.

Everyone got out of the car and stood again the rock wall overlooking a massive forest of tall, autumn colored trees. Holly wanted to touch Gail as they shared the beautiful sight. It seemed that she used all of her courage when dealing with Ford and her tank was empty. She knew Gail was like a deer. She was beautiful, but skittish. If you got too close, too fast, she’d run off.

Holly was okay with that though. She knew that getting to know Gail was a marathon and not a sprint. So she leaned on the rock wall as a chilly breeze blew through her hair.

Gail watched Holly. She watched Holly slowly close her eyes. She figured that Holly was just enjoying the beautiful day. Her lips scrunched to one side and then the other. Finally she smiled. “Hey, Pocahontas, we’re getting out of here.”

Holly’s eyes snapped open and she looked over at Gail. She just quirked an eyebrow.

Gail laughed and stepped up to her, dropping a kiss on her lips before walking back to the car.

When Holly got into the car, she saw Andy in the driver’s seat and Gail in the passenger’s seat. They were missing two people. “Where are the guys?”

“I think they’re peeing on something,” Marlo droned. She shrugged and gestured out the window toward the forest.

“Guys are weird,” Andy looked out the window toward the forest. “I wonder how they do it.”

“Well there’s a doctor in the car,” Gail answered in a sweet voice, “I’m sure she could explain it to you.”

Andy rolled her eyes, “No. I know how they do it. I just – do they take turns or like, pee back to back?”

“I bet they like walk away from each other until they can’t see each other anymore and then go,” Marlo offered.

“Nah,” Gail moved her eyes to the forest as well, “They like to measure and compare right. I bet they stand next to each other, see who can pee the most.”

Holly just sat quietly in her seat trying not to burst into giggles at the conversation.

When they guys walked out of the woods, Andy and Marlo immediately looked away. Nick walked up to the driver’s side window and knocked on the window. Then he jerked this thumb back over his shoulder, telling Andy to get out.

Andy rolled down the window a little and said, “Last ones to the car have to sit in the back.”

Gail got out so that Nick and Sam cold crawl into the back. “This is my truck,” Nick weakly protested.

Andy just laughed and pulled back onto the highway.

=+=+=+=

When they finally got to the hotel, Andy pulled up under the port and stopped by the valet station. The bellhops unloaded their luggage and the valet took the truck away. Holly led the way to the front desk and checked everyone in.

“Okay, all three rooms are on the same floor. All of them have views of the falls,” She held two envelopes of room keys in one hand and one in the other. She gestured with the hand containing two, “These rooms are connected and,” she gestured with the one envelope, “this one is a corner suite.”

Gail snatched the single envelope out of Holly’s hand, “This one is ours.”

Andy gingerly took the other one out of Holly’s hand, “Thank you so much for getting these rooms for us.”

Holly offered the other one to Marlo, who took it. “Yeah,” Marlo smiled at Holly, the first person that was really, deeply nice to her since she was caught with all the pictures in her basement. “Thank you.”

“It’s my pleasure,” Holly smiled.

“Your drinks are on me this weekend,” Marlo touched Holly’s shoulder.

“So what do we do first?” Nick asked, “Check out the rooms? Hit the tables? Grab a drink?”

“The rooms also came with two messages each so,” Holly added, “There’s that too.”

Andy looked around the lobby, “I kind of want to change.”

“To the rooms,” Sam put his arm out toward the elevators.

When they got to their hallway, everyone broke off and went to their separate rooms. Gail opened the door to hers and Holly’s room. She held the door open for Holly and walking in after her. Holly went straight for the windows, overlooking the falls. She found the balcony door and opened it, stepping out.

“It’s beautiful,” she heard from next to her.

Holly looked to her left and saw Marlo standing on the balcony next to her. Holly smiled and nodded, “Yeah, it still is. No matter how many times I see it.”

“I found the mini bar!” Gail called from inside.

Holly laughed and turned to Marlo, “It looks like it’s time to party.”

“We’ll meet you downstairs,” Marlo nodded and watched Holly walked back into her hotel room.

Gail had emptied out the minibar onto the bed and was already munching on some cheese puffs. She offered them to Holly and Holly accepted one.

“This room is awesome,” Gail smiled at Holly, “I’m glad you flirt with straight cocktail waitresses when you’re drunk.”

Holly smirked, “Well, I guess I can’t do that now.”

“Only if it gets us more free stuff,” Gail added, sitting down on the bed. She patted the bed next to her and Holly sat down.

Holly laid back on the bed, the small bottles falling toward her side. She picked up one and looked it over.

“Are you tired?” Gail asked, softly, “Do you need me to check your stitches before we go out?”

Holly shook her head. “I’m fine.”

“Can I – Can I see?” Gail asked, looking down at Holly. She played with the hem of Holly’s shirt, waiting for the okay to lift it up.

Holly hesitated. She knew that at that point, it looked a lot worse that it was because of the bruising. But she couldn’t really say not to Gail. She nodded, “Just, remember it looks worse than it is.”

Gail slowly lifted Holly’s shirt up and stopped right under her bra. She inhaled deeply, seeing the wounds that Holly suffered, now surrounded by deep purple bruising. Gail still felt responsible for what happened to Holly and it hurt her chest, seeing what she couldn’t prevent.

“I’m sorry,” Gail whispered.

Holly sat up, her shirt falling back down, and swept Gail up in a kiss. She held Gail’s face close her hers when she whispered, “It was not your fault. I don’t blame you. No one else blames you.”

Gail had been holding Holly’s eyes, but looked away. She dropped her head on Holly’s shoulder. Holly wrapped her arms around Gail. She just held her while Gail did whatever she was doing – processing, beating herself up, or finally accepting that it wasn’t her fault. Holly doubted that last one, but it was the one that she hoped it was.

Gail finally and slowly sat up straight. “Do you do want to partake in the mini bar or wait until we’re at a blackjack table and I have all of your money?”

Holly smiled. She shrugged, “Whatever you want to do.”

There was a knock on their door and Gail called, “What?”

“We’re going downstairs,” Andy called, “I got us a reservation at the steakhouse in the back of the hotel at eight.”

“Thanks Andy,” Holly called back before Gail could snap back. Holly grinned at Gail’s death glare for cutting her off. Then she stood up and walked to her bag by the door. She dropped it on the bed and started going through it.

Gail picked up a tiny can of orange juice and crawled up the bed, resting her head on the pillow.

“It seems Andy thinks that I really need my sexy lingerie,” Holly dug through her bag.

“Let me see,” Gail asked, laying on the bed.

Holly picked up some black lace panties and presented them to Gail, her thumbs hooked in the waist band.

Gail sat up and took them, “Where did you get these?”

“There’s a store downtown,” Holly shrugged, “I don’t remember the name. I saw it after a double homicide in the back of that drug store a block away.”

Gail examined the tag and then looked up at Holly, “This is weird. Because I kinda want to wear them and I kinda want you to wear them.”

“Ah the perks of dating a woman,” Holly took the panties back and threw them into her bag. “I don’t know if I like your bra or I want to rip it off of you.” Holly looked mischievously up at Gail, “Usually the answer is both.”

“You should put those panties on and we’ll find out,” Gail uttered suggestively.

Holly’s eyes bounced to the clock on the nightstand. “We don’t have time. We have dinner reservations.”

Gail looked over at the clock, “In three hours.”

Holly smirked, “Exactly.” She grabbed some black pants, the black lace panties, a matching bra, and a blue button down shirt out of her bag. She walked into the bathroom and closed the door, leaving Gail to gape after her.


	14. Chapter 14

Holly and Gail sat at the blackjack table, drinking cocktails and stealing playful glances at each other. They saw their friends floating around, but for the most part it was just them and three buddies from Montreal at the table.

They asked Gail and Holly where they were from and what they did for a living. Gail lied and said she was a waitress and Holly told them that she was a bartender. The men all worked in finance. They spoke charmingly and offered to buy them drinks.

Gail waved them off and told them that they had a dinner date later. Holly was down a large percentage of what she originally started gambling with, but Gail was up substantially more than that. Gail added that they were about to leave after the hand was over.

Holly just went with Gail’s suggestion and after Gail won the hand, Gail grabbed her chips. Holly added hers to Gail’s and stood up gingerly. Gail changed her many smaller chips to a few larger ones that she could put in her pocket. Then she finished her drink and then took Holly’s hand. She threaded her fingers between Holly’s and then waved to the guys that finally realized that hitting on Gail and Holly wasn’t going to get them anywhere.

As they walked off Gail asked Holly about her feet. Holly smiled and told her that she was fine. It only hurt a little but she would be happier when she got to sit down.

The hostess at the upscale steakhouse asked them for their party name. Gail thought it over and then said, “McNally? It’s a party of six.”

The hostess looked at the list, “I have a McNally with a party of eight.”

Gail nodded. “Looks like Andy made some friends,” Gail let Holly walk in front of her as they followed the hostess.

When they got to the table, Gail saw who had been added to their party, “Oliver.”

Oliver spotted her and stood up for a hug. “Hey Peck.”

“What are you doing here?” Gail asked, secretly glad that more of her fellow officers were around her.

Oliver patted her back and pulled back, “We were already here when we ran into Sammy at the roulette wheel.” Oliver looked behind Holly, “It’s good to see you Dr. Stewart. How are you feeling?”

“Great,” Holly told him and then turned to Celery, “I’m Holly.”

“Celery,” Celery told her and instead of shaking Holly’s hand, she gave her a hug. Holly froze for a moment and then grinned, hugging Celery back.

Andy, Nick, Sam, and Marlo were already at the table with their drinks in front of them. Gail ended up at one of the heads of the table perpendicular to Holly and Celery. On Holly’s other side was Marlo.

“How’s the chianti?” Holly asked Marlo, in a friendly manner.

Marlo took a sip of hers and smiled to Holly, “It’s pretty good.”

Holly took the review and ordered her own glass.

“How are you?” Marlo asked Holly, quietly on her side of the table. She and Gail weren’t really on the best terms. After what happened at the hospital, Marlo didn’t speak much to Gail. She knew that Holly didn’t blame her, but she knew that Gail blamed her completely.

Holly shrugged, “I lost fifty dollars to Gail at blackjack, but since she’s paying for my dinner I don’t think it’s a total loss.”

“Excuse me, I’m what?” Gail asked, overhearing the conversation.

Holly just shot a sweet smile Gail’s way and Gail rolled her eyes at herself, knowing that she was going pay for Holly’s dinner.

Dinner was filled with stories of slapstick perps and stupid crime attempts. Everyone laughed heartily and had a great meal. Oliver and Sam roped Nick, Andy, Marlo, and Gail into taking up an entire poker table with them. Celery and Holly made a plan to go look at the falls and buy some overpriced memorabilia.

“Call me if you need anything,” Gail told Holly as they were parting ways. She was trying to convey with her eyes that she meant literally anything. She would leave the poker game is Holly needed help working the tv remote in their room.

Holly nodded and kissed Gail, “Good luck.”

Holly had fun with Celery, looking over the natural wonder of the sunset over the falls. They talked about camping and travel. Then they found a coffee shop and had dessert discussing the hazards of dating a police officer. After finishing dessert, Holly told Celery that she was tired and should probably lie down.

Celery told her that she would see what kind of tea she could find around that would help Holly feel better.

“What do you mean?” Holly asked as they walked back into their hotel.

Celery looked in her purse for her phone, “You’re having trouble letting go of what happened.”

Holly started to slow her steps, “How did you know?”

Celery smiled, “You’re tired. And it didn’t happen to you that long ago. It makes sense. I’m surprised that you’re here.”

“I am running away,” Holly looked down and kicked at the plush carpet in the lobby. “And not dealing with my problems.”

Celery put her hands up, “No judgment. Everyone deals with things differently. Some people drink, some people run away, some people come to me, some people stay in bed for a week watching Kate Hudson movies.” She shrugged, “You just have to make sure you’re surrounded by the right people.”

Holly looked toward the casino where she knew Gail was having fun with her friends. She smiled softly, “I think that have.”

“Call me if you want to talk,” Celery pulled her into a hug and then held her hands, “I’ll drop the tea by your room when I find what I need.”

“Thank you,” Holly sincerely thanked her. She was willing to try anything to not wake up in a cold sweat thinking that someone was holding a gun to Gail’s head.

When she got to the room, the overhead light was off and the lamp next to the bed was on. Gail was sitting against the headboard. She had an open bottle of champagne in one hand and an unlit cigar in her mouth. There was money all over the bed.

Holly smiled, “Are you waiting for someone?”

Gail took the cigar out of her mouth. “Maybe.” Her smirk was mischievous.

Holly started unbuttoning her shirt and walking toward the bed. “I take it you won.”

Gail watched Holly’s fingers move nimbly from button to button down her torso. She smirked, “I killed.”

Holly teasingly pulled her shirt open, showing off her black lace bra. She held Gail’s eyes as the blonde took a long swig of champagne. Then she watched Gail breathlessly bite her lip.

Holly let her shirt drop to the ground and then placed her hands at the waist of her pants. She slowly unbuttoned then unzipped them, watching Gail’s eyes carefully stay with her fingers.

When the pants met the ground, Holly walked to the foot of the bed and placed her hands on the bed, near Gail’s feet. Then she followed with her knee. Slowly, she crawled up Gail’s body. Gail’s grip on the champagne bottle tightened as Holly got further up her body. She swallowed and met Holly’s eyes.

A sly smirk played on Holly’s lips. When her face got within centimeters of Gail’s Holly leaned forward so that they’re lips were a breath apart. “Why so tense?”

Gail fumbled with words, “I – I’ve just – I – I’ve never-”

Holly stopped her with a baiting kiss on her lips. Then she succeeded that with another, tilting her head in the opposite direction.

Slowly, her fingers curled around the neck of the champagne bottle. Then, suddenly she rolled to the side, off of Gail, stealing the champagne from her hand. Holly gracefully rolled off the bed and landed perfectly on her feet. “I’ll be in the bath.”

“Wait,” Gail looked over at the bathroom door. Holly stopped in the doorway and turned around. Gail looked Holly over trying to reign in control of her eyes. Gail swallowed then licked her lips. She breathed out, “Come back.”

Holly narrowed her eyes and walked back to the bed, taking a drink from the champagne bottle. She laid down on the bed next to Gail, the money ruffling under her.

Gail rolled onto her side, sweeping some money off of the bed. She looked over at Holly. Now that Holly was in front of her, she didn’t know what to do. She seemed to have that problem a lot around Holly.

“Holly, I don’t know if I can do this right now,” Gail looked over Holly’s face.

“Oh,” Holly blinked a few times and then sat up, “So you want to get out of the tree.”

Gail didn’t say anything. She just looked down at the bed, confused.

“I get it,” Holly shook her head, “Things said in the heat of the moment maybe not be…” She couldn’t finish her sentence. She just stood up and started throwing her clothes in her bag, “I’m just gonna take my stuff and grab a flight back to-”

“Holly what are you talking about?” Gail asked sitting up. “What tree? What is going on?” She frowned, “Because I won’t sleep with you?”

Holly froze, “What?”

“I don’t want to have sex with you right now. Here,” Gail shook her head, “I just don’t want to…hurt you.”

Holly slid her bag off of the bed and sat down. “Hurt me?”

“If you haven’t noticed, the only thing holding you together is some glue and about ten stitches,” Gail gestured to Holly’s body. “I want to.” Her eyes swept Holly’s bra and panties and then licked her lips, “But, um, not until you’re healed.”

Holly pushed her glasses up her face with the back of her fingers. She smiled, “I’m sorry about trying to leave or whatever.”

Gail shook her head, “It’s fine.” She crawled back up the bed and laid down. Then she opened her arms to Holly. Holly took off her glasses and put them on the nightstand before laying down with Gail. Holly grabbed the remote and turned on the tv. She flipped around until she saw a movie she recognized.

“You know I meant what I said,” Gail said suddenly half an hour later.

“What?” Holly pushed up on her elbows to look at Gail.

Gail looked down at Holly, “I meant it when I told you that I loved you. And what I wrote in my vest. I don’t – I don’t share things easily, but when I do I mean it.”

Holly felt more sheepish than she did before because she knew that about Gail. She kissed Gail, trying to accept her words and apologize for assuming the worst at the same time.

“I’m sorry,” Holly closed her eyes and rested her forehead against Gail’s. “Really. I’m just – right now is…” She sighed, “I’m sorry.”

“Stop apologizing,” Gail shook her head, pulling back from Holly.

Holly smiled and surged forward kissing Gail so hard she fell back on the bed. Gail’s hands automatically moved up to the smooth skin of Holly’s back. Holly knew that this would escalate if she didn’t stop and she knew Gail was right. There was nothing sexy about ripping her stitches.

She rolled off of Gail, but snuggled into her side, turning her attention to the movie that was playing quietly on the tv.

=+=+=+=+

Gail woke up to the distant sound of the falls and an empty bed. She still panicked for a moment when she realized Holly wasn’t in it, but it only took a cursory glance toward the balcony for Gail to spot Holly leaning on the railing. She was now wearing tight black pants and a long sleeved shirt. The balcony door was cracked and the sound coming through was like a white noise trying to lull Gail back to sleep.

It didn’t work though. Gail pushed out of bed, changed clothes in the bathroom, brushed her teeth and then moved to the balcony door. She pulled the sliding door open and stepped out onto the balcony behind Holly, who was holding a steaming cup of tea in her hands. She slipped her arms around Holly from behind and rubbed her forehead on the back of Holly’s shoulder before resting her chin on it, looking out toward the falls.

“Good morning,” Holly murmured reaching up with her hand to caress Gail’s cheek.

Gail mumbled, “Morning.”

“Good morning,” a cheery voice on the balcony two over from them added, “It’s a beautiful day.”

Gail picked her head up and glare at Andy who was grinning widely at her. Andy turned toward the falls, but the smile stayed on her face.

“We’re going to order breakfast,” Marlo stepped out on her balcony and when she saw Gail and Holly she tried to squash a smile. “Sam and Celery are on their way up. What do you guys want?”

Andy looked up at the clear sky, “I think I want oatmeal and a banana.”

Marlo looked over at Holly who was smiling at the ground, not really seeing what was going on, but enjoying Gail wrapped around her. Holly took a deep breath and looked over at Marlo then turned her head in the direction of Gail’s, “What do you want?”

Gail just grunted and Holly grinned, turning to Marlo, “Donuts.”

Marlo smiled understandingly and walked back into her room. Andy decided to let Gail and Holly have a moment on the balcony alone so she stepped back into her room.

“How do you feel?” Gail asked, softly kissing the curve of Holly’s neck.

Holly smiled and put her hand back on Gail’s face, moving it back into her hair, “I feel great.”

“Really?” Gail picked up her head and moved to lean on the railing next to Holly.

Holly nodded. She offered her tea to Gail who took it and blew on it before she took a sip. “My feet feel significantly better. I think it was the ten hours of sleep we got.”

“Ten hours?” Gail asked, wondering what time it was.

Holly pushed the hair away from Gail’s face, “I think we earned it.”

“I know we did,” Gail kissed Holly.

“What do you want to do today?” Holly asked when they walked inside to get ready.

Gail shrugged and flopped back on the bed, “What do you want to do?”

“I don’t know,” Holly grabbed a brush out of her bag. “Probably drink a lot and gamble. Or we still have those massages.” Holly ran the brush through her hair, “I bet we could find some batting cages.”

Gail threw a pillow at Holly, completely missing her.

“Oh yeah,” Holly looked at the pillow on the ground, “You don’t do sports.”

Gail glared at Holly who just laughed. Gail shook her head at herself. Her glare used to have more punch. Of course it was probably just that Holly knew that she would never do anything about it. Gail tried to glare again and muttered, “I hate you.”

Holly walked over to the bed and sat next to Gail. She leaned over and kissed Gail, “No you don’t.”

“No I don’t,” Gail mumbled.

“Not even a little bit,” Holly grinned moving back over for a kiss.

Gail nodded, “A little bit.”

Holly chuckled and shook her head, “No you don’t.” She kissed Gail.

Gail rolled her eyes and pulled Holly down on the bed. She rolled Holly onto her side so that they were facing each other. Gail kissed Holly softly and tenderly before breaking away to look at her face, “Fine. Not even a little bit.”


	15. Chapter 15

When they went next door, the door was propped open with a shoe. Gail had Holly’s hand in her own, but kept looking over her shoulder to make sure Holly was still there.

Inside, Oliver, Sam, and Andy were sitting on the bed, talking about hockey or something. Nick was talking about gardening with Celery and Marlo was pouring some coffee out of a pot that was on one of two room service carts. There was a fruit basket and muffins. A pink box was closed at one side of one of the carts. There were also mimosas.

“Hey,” Marlo smiled when they walked in. “Help yourself.”

“Thank you,” Holly offered first, “This is great.”

Marlo turned to Holly while Gail looked through the donuts in order to find one she wanted. “What are your plans for today?”

“I don’t know,” Holly shrugged. “I was thinking about finding some batting cages-”

“Oh here Holly, try this,” Gail stuffed part of a donut in Holly’s mouth. Gail looked at Marlo, “Holly and I are going to have a massage and then we’re going to find a poker table and I’m going to steal everyone’s money again.”

“Don’t get so cocky Peck,” Andy walked up behind Marlo and grabbed a mimosa, “I’m feeling lucky today.”

Gail picked up two mimosas and handed one to Holly who managed to get down the donut stuffed in her mouth. “You’re going down McNally.”

“Oh hey Holly,” Celery walked up to the group by the table.

“Hey,” Holly smiled.

Celery gestured to the bed where her purse was. Holly broke away from Gail and walked with her to it. Celery opened her purse and extracted a small plastic baggie.

“Oh my god, you didn’t have to do that so soon,” Holly accepted the baggie.

Celery just hugged Holly, “I had some time. I hope you feel better soon.”

Holly swallowed and internally agreed. She woke up three times the night before, terrified that something was happening. She heard the door close across the hall and was awake for half an hour sure that it was a gunshot. She couldn’t disturb Gail. She didn’t want to make her worry. So Holly stayed in bed as still as possible, snuggled into Gail’s side.

“Just make it like regular tea,” Celery took a step back and explained to Holly. “Let it steep for about five minutes.”

“What do I owe you?” Holly asked, knowing that this was Celery’s livelihood and trusted her with whatever was in the tea mixture although she wasn’t too sure about the magickal aspect of all of it.

Celery shook her head and put her hand on Holly’s arm, “Absolutely nothing.”

“Thank you,” Holly looked at the bag. She wondered what was in it and then wondered if it was rude to ask. She just decided to give it a try.

Gail watched Holly talking to Celery. She wasn’t even pretending to listen to Andy. She was wondering what they were walking about. She saw Celery give Holly a baggie and that coupled with Celery’s profession, made Gail a little suspicious.

Gail walked over to the phone in the room and called down to the spa to let them know that she and Holly would be down in half an hour. When she hung up, Nick was standing behind her.

“Spa day?” he asked with a smirk.

Gail nodded. “Don’t think you’re getting out of a poker game later. I’m still going to take all of your money.” She brushed past him to get back to the donuts.

+=+=+=+=

Holly dropped off her special tea in hers and Gail’s hotel rooms before going to the spa. Holly and Gail explained together to the receptionist that Holly had stitches and should be handled with care. The receptionist was very understanding and promised to let the massage therapists know.

“Would you like to do the couples massage?” the receptionist asked.

Holly looked at Gail and Gail nodded. “Yes.”

The receptionist smiled and gestured toward the back of the spa, “Right this way.”

They were led to a small room that smelled pleasant, filled with candles and soft music. There were two tables right next to each other each with a white fluffy robe and towel on it. The receptionist smiled, “Your massage therapists will be in in about ten minutes with your champagne. If you would, disrobe and place your clothes on the chair.” She gestured to a wooden chair in the corner of the room.

“Thank you,” Holly smiled at the receptionist and watched her walk out.

Both women got undressed and on the tables without giving each other a glimpse of anything but a little side boob. Holly had her hands under her head and looked over at Gail. Gail met Holly’s eyes.

“How are you supposed to drink champagne like this?” Gail asked.

Holly grinned, “No idea. Maybe they bring straws.”

Gail smiled over at Holly. Her eyes scanned Holly’s smooth tanned back and traced Holly’s spine down to the fluffy towel that was covering her ass. Gail took a deep breath and asked, “What was that tea that Celery gave you for?”

Holly shrugged, “Just to help me sleep better.”

“You haven’t been sleeping well?” Gail asked, disappointed that she didn’t know that Holly hadn’t been sleeping well.

Holly tried to find of a way to word it so that it didn’t sound like a big deal. “Just some nightmares you know? It’s not a big deal.”

Gail looked over Holly’s eyes and wanted to kick herself for not knowing. She was supposed to be perceptive, but while she was sleeping with a rock with Holly in her arms, Holly wasn’t. She was also worried about how Holly hadn’t said a word about what happened outside of her interviews. Gail swallowed, “When are you going to see the shrink? I know that when I went after my abduction it helped. Sometimes it only helped a little bit, but you can’t keep it in.”

Holly knew that Gail was right. She knew that not talking about it was only going to make her sleeping situation worse. “I have an appointment Tuesday at three.”

Gail nodded, making a mental note to make sure that no matter what, Holly got to that appointment.

There was a soft knock on the door and Holly stayed quiet, waiting for Gail to answer. Gail called for whoever was there to come in.

The massage therapists walked in, one man and one woman. The woman walked over to Holly’s side of the room and the man, Gail’s. Holly took off her glasses and set them on the small table between them.

The man set a chilling bucket on the table next to the glasses and opened the champagne. He poured it into two glasses and set them both on the table.

Gail pushed up on her elbow, checking below her to make she wasn’t exposing herself. When she saw that she wasn’t, she grabbed her glass of champagne and waited for Holly to get hers before offering a toast. She didn’t say anything, she just smiled sweetly at Holly.

Holly grinned back and tapped her glass to Gail’s. After their sips, they put their flutes down so that the message therapists could get to work.

Gail watched the woman with the perfect brown pony tail smiled as she looked down at Holly, “I’m going to get started now. I’ve been informed that you have been injured recently so let me know if anything hurts, okay?”

“Thank you,” Holly nodded and rested her cheek on her forearms to look at Gail.

Gail watched Holly until Holly started pulling faces to make her smile. Gail chuckled quietly when Holly stuck her tongue out. Then the massage therapist hit a particularly sore spot on her lower back and Holly’s eyes fluttered closed with a soft moan.

Gail suddenly became insanely jealous of the woman touching her girlfriend, making her moan. At the moment, she was ready to hit the brakes on their physical love life, but that didn’t mean she wanted other women touching Holly.

When the massage was over, Gail watched Holly just lay on the table for a few minutes. Neither one was in a hurry to get up anytime soon. Holly looked lazily over at Gail. Her therapist was so gentle that nothing hurt her at all. She felt more relaxed than she had in a long time.

Gail was happy to just watch Holly be content in the moment. She grabbed her towel and pulled it up around her torso as she sat up. She tucked the towel into itself and picked up a glass of champagne. She smiled. It was time to get Holly back for the bit of teasing that she did earlier. “I kind of want to pour this on your back and lick it off.”

Holly didn’t skip a beat, “I would be offended if you didn’t.”

Gail’s mouth went dry. She was hoping to make Holly squirm a little, but it seemed that Holly was unflappable in this territory. Of course she didn’t want Holly to think that she was all talk. She needed to save face.

Gail watched carefully as she tipped her glass over Holly’s spine. She watched the bubbly liquid fall from the rim of her flute onto Holly’s skin between her shoulder blades. It quickly ran down her spine and Gail dripped down, her lips meeting the champagne at the small of Holly’s back.

Holly’s eyes were squeezed closed. She was sure that Gail was bluffing, but when the cold champagne hit her spine, she became breathless. Then Gail’s warm, soft lips met her back and she was in heaven.

Gail had played sex games before. She had fuzzy handcuffs and had done some in the bedroom role playing, but this was turning her on way more than all those things put together. There was something fiercely erotic about running her tongue up Holly’s spine, capturing the chilly drink between her lips. She moved slowly and deliberately, sitting down on the table next to Holly, placing her hands on either side of the half-naked body below her. She closed her lips in a kiss at the base of Holly’s neck. She placed a trail of loose kisses back down Holly’s spine, ending at the top of the towel that was covering her ass.

 Holly felt Gail gathering her hair and moving it out of the way to kiss the back of her neck. Holly bit her lip. This was her weakness and she knew it. She just hoped that she had some more time before Gail figured it out and she was helpless to Gail’s advances.

Gail moved her kiss a little higher brushing Holly’s hairline and using the tips of her fingers to run softly back down Holly’s spine. Then she pressed her palm to the small of Holly’s back. Gail nuzzled into Holly’s hair before dropping a kiss on her shoulder. She had to ask in a dense whisper, “Was that too much?”

Holly shook her head, but didn’t move beyond that. “It was…amazing.”

Part of Gail wanted to say something snarky and just ruin the moment, but Gail kept her mouth shut and softly stroked Holly’s hair.

“We should probably get out of here,” Holly finally said after she felt they may be starting to overstay their welcome.

Gail agreed. She stood up with one last lingering stroke to Holly’s back. Gail made her way to her side of the room to modestly get dressed while trying to keep her eyes to herself.

Gail grabbed the bottle of champagne and took a drink out of it as they walked out of the massage room hand in hand.

They spent the rest of their last day in Niagara with their friends. They gambled, drank, and danced until they were all too exhausted to stand anymore. Gail and Holly fell asleep in their bed, half-dressed and tangled in each other.

Their city came back into view way too soon for most of the people in Nick’s vehicle. Gail told Nick to stop at her place first. She called Chris to make sure that at either he or Dov were home. They were both home and Gail let out a sigh of relief that her first action back at home wouldn’t be to clear her apartment to make sure that no one was lurking in the shadows.

They said goodbye to Andy, Nick, Marlo, and Sam on the street and lugged their bags up to the apartment.

“Eventually I’m going to have to go back to my apartment,” Holly walked in the door that Gail held open for her.

Gail closed the door behind herself and locked it, “I’ll go with you, but there’s really no rush.”

Holly took her bag to Gail’s room. Gail walked to the living room to see Dov. As she walked, her phone vibrated in her back pocket. She pulled it out and looked at the texts.

“What is it?” Dov asked, standing up.

Gail hugged Dov and then looked back at her phone, “There’s a psychological evaluation slot open at three this afternoon. She wants to know if I want it so I can get back to duty.”’

“That’s great,” Dov put his hands on his hips.

“What’s great?” Holly stepped into the living room.

“Gail just got an assessment spot so that she can get back on duty,” Dov offered for Gail.

Gail shrugged, “If I pass.”

“Why wouldn’t you pass?” Holly asked, hugging Dov in a greeting. She was a little worried about that statement. It was like Gail didn’t know if she was mentally capable of going back to work.

Gail just shrugged, “You know shrinks. You say one wrong thing and you’re in therapy for three months.”

“There’s no rush,” Holly offered understandingly, “You can go today and they can give you the green light for work and you can still take another week off.”

Gail shook her head, “I don’t want to do that.”

“If you go to the appointment and they say no, you can always blame not going back to work on some stupid doctor,” Dov explained and quickly added, “No offense.”

“But if you go and pass then don’t come back to work, you’re…” Holly trailed off not really knowing the right term, but understanding some of the machismo that comes with the police territory. Police officers are supposed to be sure of themselves and they’re supposed to be fearless. The standard is even applied to them by other officers. Any doubt about their ability to do the job properly could be seen a weakness. Holly nodded, “I understand.”

“It’s stupid,” Gail shook her head trying to put a kibosh on the conversation about her mental health. She remembered that Holly had an appointment the next day and renewed her vow to get Holly there no matter what.

“How’s Chloe?” Holly asked.

Dov moved to the armchair in the room and sat down. “She’s fine. Her parents are visiting today so I’m here to take a little breather.”

Gail sat down on the couch and patted the seat next to her waiting for Holly to take a seat. When Holly lowered herself down, Gail turned to Dov, “What happened with her husband thing?”

Dov chuckled, “She actually forgot that they got married. It apparently wasn’t as big of a deal to her as it was to her husband and when they broke up, she just forgot.”

“How do you forget something like that?” Gail gawked.

Dov shrugged, “She said that night was a little hazy to begin with.” Dov put his feet up on the table, “Poor guy was crushed.”

“Are the girls ba-“ Chris trailed off walking out of the bathroom with a towel around his waist. He stopped dead in the doorway, looking embarrassed.

“Relax,” Gail rolled her eyes, “Nothing I haven’t seen.”

“And nothing I’m interested in,” Holly looked over her shoulder at him, “No offense.”

He absorbed the statements and then laughed, “How was your trip?”

“Great,” Gail answered for the both of them. “We drank and gambled.” Her eyes moves to Holly and she added holding Holly’s eyes, “We got some massages.”

Holly swallowed hard, remembering how her massage ended.

Chris looked over at Dov who didn’t have any idea what that look meant either. Chris shrugged and ran a hand over his wet hair, “I’m going to go get dressed. I have to go find an apartment.”

“No you don’t,” Gail scoffed.

“I’ve been sleeping on a couch and living out of boxes.” Christ stated, “I need my own place. At least my own bedroom.”

“But we have so much fun,” Dov sat up straighter. “Star Wars nights. Tequila nights. That Walking Dead drinking game that we made up. That video game drinking game. Carrying Gail home from the Penny.”

“That happened once,” Gail defended herself, laying back on the couch. She rested her head on Holly’s lap.

“It happened at least six times,” Chris mentioned. He walked over to his suitcase on the ground next to the couch. He grabbed some clothes and walked back to the bathroom.

“Don’t believe them,” Gail looked up at Holly.

Holly just smiled down at Gail, fully believing the men, but elated to just run her fingers through Gail’s hair.

Chris stepped out of the bathroom fully dressed, “What if we got another apartment together? Three bedrooms? Less noisy neighbors?”

Dov looked over at Gail. Gail lulled her head over toward Dov. She shrugged, “I want my own bathroom.”

“We want you to have your own bathroom,” Chris walked past the couch into the kitchen.

“Dr., uh, Holly,” Dov caught himself. He cleared his throat, “How do you like your neighborhood?”

Holly shook her head, “Not so much anymore.”

“Fair enough,” Dov nodded.

“I was actually thinking about moving into Andy’s building,” Holly offered, “She told me that they just finished remodeling a few apartments the floor above her.”

“You’re going to move?” Gail looked up at Holly.

Holly nodded, “I think so. I love my place now, but it’ll always be the place where…it happened.” Holly took a deep breath, “I think I want a fresh start.”

Gail pushed up on her elbows, capturing Holly’s lips. She lingered with her lips touching Holly’s a little longer than normal. When she did break the kiss, she added, “ You can stay here for as long as you need. Until you find a new place or whatever.”

“Thank you,” Holly smiled, unabashedly awash in adoration for Gail. She pushed her fingers through Gail’s hair and then gently rested her palm on Gail’s cheek.

Dov looked at his watch and stood up, “I’m going to go back to the hospital.”

“I’ll drop you,” Chris offered, “I’m going to go check out those apartments above Andy before shift.”

“You’re working?” Gail asked, sitting up all the way and looking over the back of the couch at Chris.

Chris nodded, “15 is a mess, but we’re short a lot of officers who aren’t cleared yet.”

Gail clenched her jaw. Suddenly she felt bad for putting off the appointment that was offered to her in the afternoon. If she could get cleared, then she could help. Gail turned her eyes to the biggest reason that she didn’t want to go back to work.

Holly seemed to know what she was thinking and smiled, “You don’t have to stop working because of me. Remember you said that we have to carry on because people depend on us?” Holly grabbed the front of Gail’s shirt and pulled her close so that she could whisper in Gail’s ear, “But only if you’re ready.”

Gail appreciated that Holly added that last part, especially that she whispered it. She never wanted to seem weak, but the woman holding onto her shirt seemed to dwell in her weak spots.

Gail took a deep breath and looked at Holly’s face, “I have to at least try. I can man the front desk or booking. I just…it’s my job.”

Holly nodded, “I understand.” She smiled and kissed Gail. “Call the psychologist. I’m going to go take a shower.” She kissed Gail again, this time deepening the kiss.

“Are you just going to stay here?” Gail asked Holly as she stood.

Holly shrugged, “I don’t know. I have some friends who have been bugging me to go out. Maybe we’ll go for coffee or something. I’ll text you if I leave.”

“I’ll get you a spare key so you can come and go,” Gail offered, pulling Holly into her arms for a gentle embrace.

Holly smiled, “Thank you.”


	16. Chapter 16

Holly decided to meet up with some of her friends a coffee shop while Gail was at her appointment. She locked up the apartment and took a cab downtown. Traffic was bad so she told the cab driver that she could walk the rest of the way. He let her off at the nearest corner.

As she walked, Holly’s eyes bounced from face and face. She stopped at a crosswalk and felt her heart speed up. There were people all around her and it felt like her chest was about to cave in. She looked frantically around her. She tried to find him. She tried to find Ford in the crowd, lurking and waiting for her to be alone. Or waiting for her to look so that he could execute Gail in front of her.

As soon as the crosswalk sign lit up, Holly took off running. She weaved in and out of people on the sidewalk, her fists clenched and her breathing ragged. She burst into the coffee shop and stopped cold in the doorway.

There weren’t many people in the coffee shop at three in the afternoon, but the ones that were looked at her. She slowly closed the door and spotted her friends. She put on a smile and walked over to them. “I just could not wait to see you guys.”

They all seemed to buy it as her friends stood to hug her. Her friend picked her up in his arms and spun her around. She smiled, forgetting her episode, just happy to see her friends.

They all asked her what happened and if she was okay. She told them that she was okay and gave them the brief version of what happened. After that they didn’t ask any more questions about what happed with Ford. The conversation moved in a different direction.

“Where have you been staying?” her friend asked.

“With Gail,” she offered bashfully.

The whole table grinned and the guy sitting next to her bumped her arm with his, “When do we get to meet her?”

She shrugged, “Whenever.” She took a sip of her coffee, “It’s not like I’m trying to hide her from you guys.”

Her friend across the table leaned on it with a grin, “Megan says that she’s hot.”

“I can confirm that,” Holly grinned mischievously.

After about an hour, her friends had to get back to work. One of them took her back to Gail’s apartment and told her to not be a stranger when she got out.

Holly hadn’t thought about it before, but as she used the spare key to open Gail’s apartment door, the significance dawned on her. Of course this wasn’t really a normal situation for a normal couple. Some things had been accelerated in hers and Gail’s relationship while some things moved slower than normal.

Holly closed and locked the door behind herself. She put her purse down and tried to figure out what she was going to do until Gail got back.

Gail had wanted to get home long before she actually did. Her session took two hours. She was tired of talking about her feelings and just talking in general. She just wanted to….

As she walked down the hallway of her apartment building, she heard a sound that caused her heart to race and adrenaline to surge through her. Gail threw her door open when she heard gunfire in her apartment. She ran into the living room where the noise was coming from and saw Holly sitting on the couch with a controller in her hand. On the screen in front of her, Holly’s character was chasing around some kind of alien and shooting at it.

Gail rolled her eyes and went back to the door to close it. Then she walked into the living room and sat down next to Holly. Holly paused the game and smiled, “How’d it go?”

Gail shrugged, “I think it went well. I’ll know something in the next few hours.”  Gail leaned on Holly and rested her head on her girlfriend’s shoulder.

“Are you ready?” Holly put her arm around Gail’s shoulders.

Gail nodded, “I talked to Frank and he’s going to put me on the front desk for a little while if I do get cleared.”

Holly did have to admit that she would sad that she wasn’t going to get to spend all day with Gail, but she knew eventually they both had to go back to work. She kissed Gail’s forehead, figuring that that was all she needed to say.

“Are you going to be okay?” Gail asked softly.

Holly nodded and stroked Gail’s hair. “Of course.”

Gail sat up and looked at Holly, “You can’t say it like that. Like of course you’re okay. There’s no of course. You were abducted and crashed through the front doors of the police station.” Gail looked intensely into Holly’s tired eyes. She didn’t realize that this was something that was really bothering her until the shrink guided her to her feelings, “You haven’t been sleeping well. It’s not okay.”

Holly swallowed and held Gail’s eyes. She guiltily tried to look away, but Gail’s gaze held her in. Holly nodded, “You’re right. It’s not been okay.” She crossed her legs on the couch, facing Gail. “I just…don’t know how to deal with things like that. I’m not good with emotions. I…” She tried not to tear up, but was fighting a losing battle, “I don’t know what to do.”

Gail moved forward and wrapped her arms around Holly. Holly buried her face in Gail’s shoulder and tried to hold back the tears. As much as she wanted to confide completely in Gail – as much as she wanted to let it all go, she still didn’t feel like she could.

They stayed like that, both fighting tears for a few minutes. Holly finally pulled back. She looked around the room and grabbed another controller, “I’m going to kick your ass now.”

Gail took the controller and looked over at Holly, “You know if you want to talk…right?”

Holly nodded, “I will. Soon. Just not right now.” She looked guiltily at Gail, knowing that she had been squashing all of her emotions and that Gail didn’t deserve that.

Gail leaned over and kissed Holly. “I’ll be here when you’re ready.”

Holly smiled hopefully and Gail smiled lovingly. Gail held Holly’s eyes until gunfire erupted from the tv and Holly’s character fell onto the ground before respawning somewhere else.

“How did you do that?” Holly looked at the tv.

Gail just laughed maniacally and took off sprinting after Holly’s character.

A little while later, Dov walked into the apartment and took off his jacket. He looked toward the living room and saw Holly sitting in Gail’s lap as they played video games. He smiled and shook his head. He once had feelings for Gail, but he was glad that she was happy now. In fact, he didn’t think he had ever seen her as happy as she was now, despite everything that happened.

“I’m gonna order pizza,” Dov called as his dropped his coat on the chair adjacent to the couch. “What kind do you guys want?”

Holly pressed the start button the controller and her portion of the screen went grey. “Um, pepperoni?”

Gail didn’t try to pause it, she just looked up at Dov, “Extra pepperoni.”

“Awesome,” he took his phone out of his pocket, “I want in next game.”

“I thought you were going to be at the hospital,” Gail called over her shoulder.

The second Holly unpaused the game, Gail meleed Holly’s character. She had snuck up behind Holly who didn’t actually pause the game and waited for her to look at the screen to take her out. Holly pouted. It had been a pretty competitive game until just then.

“Chloe is sleeping and her mom is with her,” Dov offered with his phone to his ear. “I figured I should probably sleep a few hours and shower. I’m back on shift tomorrow.”

That reminded Gail to check her phone for the results of her evaluation. She picked up the phone off of the coffee table and saw the light at the top of her phone blinking green. It meant that she had a message.

When she unlocked her phone she found the email from Frank. Gail opened it and read it over, “I’ve been cleared. I start shift tomorrow.”

“Second shift?” Dov asked, hopefully.

Gail looked at him and nodded.

“That’s great,” Holly smiled, but she didn’t really think it was all that great. Yes, she was happy that Gail had been cleared to go back to the job that she loved, but she didn’t like that it was so soon. She especially didn’t like that she was going to be alone for half of the night.

“Are you going to be okay?” Gail quit the match and wrapped her arms around Holly’s middle.

Holly nodded, “Yeah. I’ll just have some friends over or something.”

“Andy’s evaluation isn’t until tomorrow morning, so she won’t be back on shift until at least the day after tomorrow,” Dov offered, “I bet you two could hang out tomorrow evening.”

Holly nodded, deciding to think it over. She turned back to Gail. “Are you ready?”

“He told me I have front desk duty,” Gail looked up at Holly, “I am easing back into it. If you get scared or freaked out, you can come to the-” Gail took a deep breath, “I guess coming to 15 probably wouldn’t help anything.”

“I’ll hang out with Andy or Celery or Megan or someone,” Holly promised, “I’m okay as long as I’m not alone.”

“I don’t suppose you two want to go to the Penny?” Dov asked, looking at his phone.

Gail chastely ran her hand up and down Holly’s thigh. “I was hoping that we could stay in and watch the complete first season of Holly’s favorite show…Twin Peaks?”

Holly grinned, “I love that show, but it’s not my favorite. How did you know?”

“It was the weirdest show I could think of,” Gail smiled and kissed Holly’s cheek.

Holly didn’t take it as an insult. She smiled that Gail knew her so well.

They played video games with Dov well into the night. At around midnight, Holly reigned herself out and decided to head to bed. Gail of course followed her.

“You didn’t have to come with me,” Holly stated as she used the mirror in Gail’s bedroom to change her bandages.

Gail walked up to Holly who was struggling because the stitches were at such a weird angle. “Let me,” Gail stated. She didn’t answer Holly’s statement. She knew that she didn’t have to, but something in her felt like, yes, she _had_ to. If not for Holly, then for herself.

“Thank you,” Holly told Gail when she was done affixing the fresh bandage.

“There was no blood on this one,” Gail threw away the old one and moved to the bathroom to watch her hands.

“Go me,” Holly pulled on an old baseball t-shirt and sat on the bed. She kicked off her shoes.

They both settled into bed and after the trip home and marathon gaming, they both easily drifted off to sleep.

Gail rolled onto her side. She didn’t know what it was about being back in her home city that put her on edge. She looked over Holly’s shoulder at her face and reached forward to touch her back, softly as to not wake her.

After her hand grazed Holly’s bare shoulder, Gail tucked her hands under her pillow and closed her eyes. She kept thinking about what she could have done differently the morning that Holly was abducted. She kept playing out scenarios in her head that would have stopped Holly from going through the horrible trauma that now wakes her in the middle of the night.

Gail thought that maybe she should have pushed Holly out the door first, or taken her down the elevator. She shouldn’t have let Holly stop and try to help the man that fell. Gail wondered what would have happened, had she and Holly just stayed in her apartment instead of joining the rush down the stairs. She should have called for backup before escorting Holly out of the apartment. She should have called the security guard to make sure that there was actually a fire. She should have been more aware of her surroundings. She should have held Holly’s hand tighter. She shouldn’t have let the surge of people push her out the door. She should have made Holly put shoes on.

Gail swallowed the emotion that was building up behind her eyes. She moved forward and put her arm around Holly’s waist. At this point, she was no longer scared of overstepping any bounds or showing her affections unabashedly to Holly. She needed to hold her and protect her. She needed to make sure she was okay and try to fix the broken promise that she had left Holly with when she let Ford take her.

Gail dropped a kiss on the back of Holly’s neck. She squeezed her eyes closed and rested her head on the pillow, “I’m sorry.”


	17. Chapter 17

Holly looked over at Gail. She had been awake for a while. She wondered if she was ever actually going to sleep without a panicked interruption again. Holly looked over Gail’s relaxed features. She smiled softly, taking in her completely placid expression. She wondered what Gail was dreaming about.

She got two more hours in than she usually did. She decided to count that as progress.

Holly picked up her book and started reading. It was two chapters later that Gail began to stir. Holly, who was sitting against the headboard, threaded her fingers in Gail’s messy hair and gently massaged her scalp.

Gail moved toward the heat and pressed her face against Holly’s outer thigh. Holly felt a light kiss where Gail’s lips were closest and closed her book. She pushed her glasses up on top of her head and shimmied down the bed.

“You’re sweet in the morning,” Holly stated her observation and slid her arms around Gail’s waist.

Gail groaned in response and buried her face in Holly’s neck. Holly felt another kiss on her neck. She loved the soft side of Gail. Gail was sweet and tender when given a safe place to be herself. Holly pulled Gail tight against herself and kissed the side of her head. She loved that Gail felt that she was a safe place.

“How long have you been up?” Gail’s voice was raspy and laced with sleep.

“Not long,” Holly answered. She loved holding Gail this close. So close that they barely had to whisper to communicate. “I slept for a long time though. Uninterrupted.”

“Good,” Gail finally looked at Holly’s face. She kissed her tenderly and then rolled out of her arms, “I have to pee.”

Holly chuckled. She shook her head. She didn’t actually mind when Gail ruined the moment on purpose. She felt it was charming. She pulled Gail’s blankets up over her head. She pulled Gail’s pillow to her face and just laid there.

Holly felt a weight settle on top of her and smiled into the pillow.

“Am I hurting you?” Gail asked carefully.

“No,” Holly answered.

Gail slipped her hands under the blanket and found both of Holly’s hands easily. Gail’s hand rested on top of Holly’s and she slipped her fingers between Holly’s.

Even though they were separated by the blanket, Holly felt close to Gail. They were only holding hands and Holly felt like she was naked under Gail. She felt vulnerable and safe. She felt protected in a way she’d never felt before.

Gail used her chin to push down the blanket enough to expose Holly’s shoulder. She dropped a kiss on her shoulder. It was slow and natural.

“Let’s go to breakfast,” Gail mumbled against Holly’s ear.

At a café down the street, Holly nibbled on her croissant. She leaned back and looked across the small worn table at Gail. “Do you need some more coffee?”

“I’m fine,” Gail stated. She smiled softly and lazily like she was just so content in the moment that she couldn’t stop herself.

Holly’s phone buzzed on the table and she picked it up. She opened the text message that she just received, smiled and replied with apt speed.

“Who’s that?” Gail couldn’t stop herself from asking even if she wanted to.

Holly put her phone back down, “It’s Andy. She asked me if I wanted to go rock climbing after my appointment.”

“She knows that half your body is stitches right?” Gail quirked an eyebrow. She still didn’t like Andy and Holly hanging out too much. Holly was hers and she didn’t want Andy taking what was hers again - or something that that sounded less possessive and paranoid.

Holly grinned, “I’ll be fine. I won’t strain or anything.” She took a sip of her tea, “I should probably go look at that apartment in her building before Chris decides he wants it for himself.”

“I probably shouldn’t let Dov and Chris be in charge of finding our new apartment,” Gail huffed, not really up to looking for apartments.

“My climbing shoes are at my apartment,” Holly frowned, tapping the table with the tips of her fingers.

“You have climbing shoes?” Gail quirked an eyebrow.

Holly smiled, “Yeah. I do sports remember?”

“That’s gross.” Gail leaned on the table with her forearms, the chair under her creaking with her movement, “And for the record, rock climbing isn’t a sport. It’s actively trying to kill yourself.”

“It’s perfectly safe,” Holly was amused.

Gail shook her head, “You could fall or rip out your stitches.”

“There are harnesses and I’m a doctor,” Holly leaned forward as well, challenging Gail.

Gail cocked her head to the side, “You’re a dead people doctor.”

Holly didn’t have a retort, but she smiled at Gail. “You’re insane. You know that right?”

Gail grinned, resting her chin in her palm. “I’ve been told.”

After they finished their breakfast, they went back to Gail’s apartment so she could gather her things for her first shift back. Then Gail drove Holly to Andy’s apartment.

“This is beautiful,” Holly commented looking around.

Andy smiled, tugging at the hem of her grey Henley. “Yeah, and it’s so close to 15. I mean I’m not sure how close 15 is to the morgue, but I bet you could walk to work if you moved in upstairs. Do you go jogging? There’s a great park down the street that I meet Traci at sometimes.”

“I’m not a big jogger, but it’s definitely close enough to my office to walk,” Holly looked around at the floors and layout, “Did you say it was upstairs?”

“Yeah, two floors I think,” Andy moved toward the kitchen, “Do you two want some tea?”

“I’m fine,” Gail still wasn’t super keen on the idea of Holly and Andy spending the day together. She looked around the apartment, trying to find something wrong with it. She knew what would happen if Holly moved into the building. Andy and Holly would become best friends and jog to work together or something and have weekend rock climbing dates…Gail took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. She knew that Holly wasn’t Nick. She had proven that in so many ways. It’s just that when one gets abandoned as much as Gail did…she always worried.

“Did Frank tell you where you’re going to be?” Andy asked Gail, conversationally.

Gail nodded, “I’m going to stay at the front desk for a while.”

Andy nodded understandingly. She knew that the whole thing had been the hardest on Gail as far as officers went. A week at the front desk would do her some good.

“Is there even a front desk left?” Holly asked, leaning on the counter.

Andy turned on the kettle, “I went and looked yesterday. All the glass is cleaned up. There are boards on some of the windows, but it’s mostly back to normal. The only thing that was really damaged was the glass. They had to order the new glass to it’ll be boards and caution tape for a while.” Andy cleared her throat, the memory etched into her mind, “The area where the grenade exploded is taped off.”

Gail looked over at Holly. She was looking toward the windows. She moved around the counter and put her arm around Holly’s waist.

Holly looked up at her. There was something in her eyes that was relieved when Gail’s arm touched her. She smiled softly, “It’ll probably be cold at the front desk. Do you have your coat?”

Gail nodded with a hint of a smile, “It’s in my locker.”

Holly kissed Gail’s cheek then asked Andy, “Where’s your washroom?”

“Down that hallway,” Andy pointed behind Holly.

Holly thanked her and walked off.

“McNally,” Gail waited until she had Andy’s full attention. “She has an appointment at three with the division shrink,” Gail told Andy firmly, “Don’t let her miss it.”

Andy shook her head, “I won’t. I swear.” She grabbed some teabags and placed them in the mugs she got down. “How is she holding up?”

“She’s-” Gail started, then shook her head, “I don’t know. I thought I did, but…”

Andy nodded in understanding, “I’ll make sure she gets there. I promise.”

When Holly returned, Gail had to leave so they said their goodbyes in the doorway. Holly felt a knot in her stomach knowing that Gail was leaving to go back to work at the place where she almost died. Her hands were shaking when Gail kissed her.

Gail noticed and took Holly’s hands, “I’ll be fine. I have the most boring job at the division today.” She squeezed Holly’s hands, “Please text me when you’re done rock climbing so I know you’re not in the hospital.”

Holly grinned at that statement and nodded, “Promise.”

When Gail left, Andy showed Holly the layout of her apartment and then called down to the front office to have someone show Holly the one upstairs.

“What’s the security like?” Holly asked the building manager as she walked around the empty apartment. Andy was sitting on the counter in the kitchen area that was almost exactly like hers.

“We have security doors at the front entrance” he explained kindly.

“And a police officer two floors down,” Andy grinned. “And if I have my way, three more moving in soon.”

Holly chuckled, “That is a plus.”

The manager let Holly looked around while he and Andy talked about the local baseball team. Andy looked at her watch and looked around for Holly.

“Holly?” Andy called, sliding off of the counter, “We gotta go.”

Holly emerged from the hallway. She addressed the manager, “Can I come by your office tomorrow morning? I have some questions.”

“Of course,” he nodded.

Andy and Holly walked to the police department administration building. As they did Andy asked her if she was going to move in.

“I think so,” Holly shrugged. “I have to look at the lease, but I like the location. I’ll miss my lofted apartment though.”

“I’m sure you can find another lofted apartment,” Andy encouraged her. “Maybe the next building over. There’s no rush.”

“There kinda is,” Holly put her hands in her pockets, “I’m staying with Gail, Chris, and Dov in a two bedroom apartment and I don’t see ever being able to be comfortable in my apartment ever again.”

Andy pulled on the strings of her hoodie, “I get it. But I’m sure Gail doesn’t mind waiting for you to find a place you really love. That the fun in looking for a new place to live right? Finding something you love about somewhere new is awesome.”

Holly ran a hand through her hair and nodded, “You’re right. I just don’t want to crowd Gail.”

Andy snorted, “Please. I’m pretty sure if we wouldn’t have to arrest her, she’d keep you hostage at her apartment.”

Holly smiled nervously, “I just don’t want her to get tired of me. We have spent a lot of time together.”

“You have been through a lot together already,” Andy assured her. “Like more than most relationships could survive. And you were friends first. She used to ditch us all the time to spend time with you. That means she likes you more than us, which granted isn’t hard, but she actually _likes_ you.”

Holly smiled. She knew that Gail liked her. She knew that Gail loved her. She could feel both things. It didn’t stop the insecurities from creeping through her entire body after a lifetime of never feeling like she belonged anywhere, but the morgue.

Andy promised to wait outside of the office for Holly, although Holly told her that she didn’t have to. Andy just sat down in a chair and picked up a magazine with a friendly smile.

=+=+=+=+

“There’s something to be said for being comfortable in silence,” the psychologist interrupted the lengthy quiet of the room. “However, I feel as if we may be wasting your time, Dr. Stewart.”

“Sorry,” Holly immediately apologized. “I was just thinking.”

“You can share your thoughts if you want,” the psychologist offered.

Holly ran both of her hands through her hair and leaned forward, her forearms on her thighs. “You know how people say at least you got out okay?” Holly asked the psychologist. The psychologist gave her a noncommittal nod so Holly continued as she sat back in her chair, “But when you get out with that kind of destruction….” Holly sat back in her chair. “When you lose your sense of security and your faith in people. When you stop sleeping at night and you’re scared of what’s in the dark…. Did you really get out okay?”

Holly licked her lips and asked with a sigh, “Did I really get out okay?”

“What do you think?” the psychologist asked.

Holly shook her head. “I don’t think that I did.”

“What makes you think that?” the psychologist prodded.

Holly leaned all the way back in her chair and rested her cheek on her closed fist, “I already wrote down my symptoms on that form I had to fill out before I came in here. They’re fairly standard for post-traumatic stress.”

“So you recognize that your lack of sleep and panic attacks stem from your abduction?” the psychologist asked.

Holly raised her eyebrows, “Of course they do. There has been no other stressor in my life that could cause symptoms of that magnitude.”

The psychologist made a note, “I’d like to move on to your support system.”

“My support system,” Holly let out a melancholy smile. “I haven’t been asked about that in fifteen years.”

“You were in counseling fifteen years ago?” the psychologist added another note.

Holly nodded, “I was in foster care. It was standard practice for me to see a psychologist four times a year to evaluate my living situations. Obviously, I was under the supervision of one of the better foster care organizations.” Holly ran a hand through her hair, “So my support system? I have friends. Great friends. And I have a great girlfriend.”

“Have you talked to your girlfriend about what happened?”

Holly fidgeted in her seat, “Not really. I mean, she was there.”

“A police officer?”

Holly leaned again on her knees and examined her nails, “Ford, um, held a gun to her head. He was going to kill her. I can still see it, you know? I wake up in the middle of the night, sure that Ford is about to pull the trigger. Then I have nightmares that Gail is on my autopsy table. I’ve seen that kind of fatal wound before and in my dreams, I see it on her, right through,” Holly started to get choked up, “right through her head.”

“Why do you think you’ve resisted telling Gail about your dreams?”

Holly shrugged, “I figure that she knows and I don’t want to burden her really.”

“But what are support systems for if not to share burdens?” the psychologist added.

Holly inhaled and exhaled. She looked at the clock and saw that she’d been in the office for almost an hour, “Can I go?”

The psychologist looked at her watch. She nodded. “Yes.” She politely stood with Holly and watched her walk out, making a few notes on her clipboard, preparing her recommendation.

Andy was sitting in the same spot when Holly walked out. Holly smiled, “You didn’t have to wait.”

Andy brushed off that statement and asked, “Ready to go climbing?”

“As ready as I’m ever going to be,” Holly opened the waiting room door for Andy and followed her friend out.

Holly was more careful rock climbing than she usually was. She wouldn’t stretch far or make jumps to grab a rock. She would just carefully climb up the wall, slowly, but surely.

“Maybe next time we can go climbing on some actual rocks,” Andy looked down at Holly from her perch a few feet higher.

Holly surveyed the climbing gym. She had been to this one before and had climbed most of the walls. Holly nodded, “That would be fun. I hear there’s a beautiful formation in Collingwood.”

“We should go some time,” Andy offered. “There’s a nice campground up there too. You could bring Gail.”

Holly chuckled, “I don’t think I could get Gail to go camping.” She reached for a hold above her head and pulled herself up.

Andy looked up and made a small jump for a hold, quickly setting her feet into a crevice in the wall. “If anyone could, it’s you.”

Holly grinned knowing that yeah, she could probably get Gail to go camping. With that happy feeling, she ascended the wall all the way to the top. Andy had made it there first, but was waiting for Holly to catch up.

After they finished at the climbing gym, Andy took Holly to a dinner of beer and pizza. They watched a soccer game on the tv over the bar and cheered with the rest of the bar when their team won.

After dinner, Holly went to a bookstore down the street and Andy followed. Holly grabbed a few classics and then led the way out. As they walked back to Andy’s apartment Holly offered, “I think I’m going to go back to Gail’s apartment. It’s been a while since I’ve been rock climbing and it kind of wore me out.”

“Are you sure?” Andy asked, putting her hands in her jacket pockets.

When Holly told Andy that she was sure, Andy called her a cab and waited outside with Holly. Andy looked at her watch, “Gail will be off in about an hour.”

Holly couldn’t help, but be excited that she was going to have Gail back. When the cab arrived, Holly hugged Andy and thanked her for a good time.

“We definitely have to hang out again sometime,” Andy smiled. Andy subtly looked the cab driver over and read over the license plate of the cab. Cabs still made her a little nervous after what happened to Gail.

Holly watched the nighttime street pass by on the short drive to Gail’s apartment. She paid the cab driver and walked into the building. She used her key to open the door and found the apartment empty.

Holly closed the door and listened for a moment to make sure no one else was there before locking the door and heading to Gail’s room.

Gail walked quietly into her apartment with Dov and Chris.

“I’m gonna change and go see Chloe,” Dov told his friends.

Chris nodded, “I’m beat. I’m just going to go to sleep.”

Gail didn’t say anything. She had waited eight hours to finally be with Holly again and she wasn’t going to waste any more time. She walked to her bedroom with her bag in her hand.

The door was cracked and the lamp inside the room was on. Gail smiled when she saw Holly sitting on the bed, in sweat pants and a tank top, reading. Holly immediately looked up when the door opened and smiled.

“I thought you’d be asleep,” Gail confessed, dropping her bag by the door and closing the door all the way.

Holly closed her book and put it down on the floor next to the bed. Then she stood and made her way to Gail. Gail put her arms around Holly’s waist and held her tight, closing her eyes. She had never known the allure of having someone to come home to, but she’d just found it in this embrace with Holly.

She loved knowing that someone was at her apartment waiting for her to come home. Someone she could count on would be excited to see her the second she stepped through the doorway.

Gail wanted to tell Holly that she missed her and never stopped worrying. But she still wasn’t great at expressing herself so she just squeezed Holly tighter.

Holly understood the physical communication and sweetly waited until Gail was ready to let go. “I missed you too.”


	18. Chapter 18

“Do you ever wonder about your parents?” Gail asked, not sure if it was something that she could really ask, but it had been bugging her since her mom had called her earlier in the day. “Like what happened to them?”

Holly inhaled deeply and nodded, “Yeah. Of course. I wonder about my brother too. I wonder if he’s ever looked for me, or even remembers that I exist.” Holly looked at Gail who was standing in the kitchen, making them sandwiches. They let themselves sleep in after the long emotional day apart. Although neither wanted to go to sleep, they knew that they would be content in each other’s arms.

“Have you ever looked at the police records?” Gail asked keeping her back to Holly, not sure how her almost-offer was going to go over. She wanted to keep her expression to herself in case the look on her face would make Holly think that she was encouraging her to find her brother or dissuading her to.

Holly pulled one of her legs to her chest and rested her heel on the edge of the kitchen chair, “I’m not allowed to.”

Gail picked up the sandwiches and walked to the table. She set Holly’s down in front of her. “But you know cops who have access.” She didn’t want to specifically offer to do it, like she was pressuring Holly into it. Holly had other cop friends like Chris and Dov and…ugh, Andy.

Holly nodded. “I’ve thought about it.” She bit her lip and looked over at Gail. “I don’t know if I’m ready.” Then she shrugged. “I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready.”

Gail reached over and took Holly’s hand, “I’m not saying you should. I was just… you know,” she retracted her hand, “offering.”

“Thank you,” Holly rested her chin on her knee, “But I’m not sure if I’ll ever be ready.”

Gail nodded and popped a chip into her mouth, “Are you going to look at that apartment again today?”

Holly nodded, picking her head up and moving her stare away from the table.

Gail begrudgingly admitted that if she wasn’t living near Holly, she was glad that Andy would be close. Andy was a good cop and she was loyal unless she went undercover with someone’s boyfriend. Gail watched Holly pick up her sandwich and take a bite. She looked Holly over and tilted her head to the side. She narrowed her eyes and added, “They’d be proud of you, you know.”

Holly let out a half-smile. “Thank you, Gail.” Holly was actually really doubtful about that because she had been taken out of the home because of abuse and neglect, but it was nice to hope. She picked up a chip, “I used to daydream about them.” She nibbled on the chip and saw Gail was waiting for her to continue. “I used to wish that there had been a mistake and my family was going to come get me. They would look something like me and we would have holidays together. They would live in a huge house and they would let me take Mister because when I moved away from my first foster family, I couldn’t take him. My new foster family had a bio kid that was allergic.” Holly shrugged dismissively, letting the memory drift away just like she let the wish of her parents and brother coming to get her drift away. “But kids always want lives they can’t have.”

“What did – do you think happened to your brother?” Gail asked softly. She was curious, but she didn’t want to push Holly, especially with the emotional turmoil Holly had been through lately. She wanted to keep things light and unserious for as long as she could.

Holly adjusted her glasses, “Statistically, you have probably arrested him a few times. But I hope he’s happy now wherever he is.”

“You’re incredible,” Gail smiled. She didn’t have anything to do with Holly’s success and she wasn’t there as it happened, but she was proud of Holly for making the most out of a bad situation.

Holly smiled, deeply appreciating Gail’s praise. “Thank you.”

Gail wasn’t sure it would be okay to bring it up at that time, but she always had terrible timing so she just decided to ask while she was thinking about it, “My mom wanted to know if you wanted to have dinner with us tomorrow night? Steve, Traci, and Leo will be there.”

“Are you going?” Holly took another bite of her sandwich.

Gail smirked, “Only if you are.”

Holly chuckled, “Yeah. Why not? Let’s go.”

Gail texted her brother to let him know that they would be at the dinner. Then she took a bite of her food, “How are your stitches?”

“Healing rather nicely, if I do say so myself,” Holly grinned. She rubbed her side carefully and was actually really surprised of the good shape that they were in after she went rock climbing with Andy.

Gail went with Holly to look at the apartment. Gail was happy to see that it didn’t look exactly like Andy’s apartment. She loved Holly’s old apartment. It seemed perfect for her girlfriend, but she knew that the memories in the building were too much. Gail understood and supported Holly leaving all the negativity behind her.

“What do you think?” Holly asked, turning to Gail. She stood in front of the windows and looked at Gail who hadn’t left the kitchen area.

“It’s a lot smaller,” Gail shrugged. “No loft?”

Holly shook her head, “Just the kitchen, living room, with the bedroom and office down the hallway.” Holly looked around, “I don’t think I’d mind.”

Gail walked over to Holly and put her arms around her waist, “I will miss your fireplace.”

Holly grinned, “There’s an electric one in the bedroom.”

Gail feigned a gasp, “Your bed and a fireplace in one room? I don’t think I’ll ever leave.”

Holly kissed Gail lightly, “Who says you have to?”

Gail kept her eyes closed long after Holly pulled away from the kiss. She was sure that Holly didn’t mean that she didn’t have to leave in the way she wanted. She had been thinking about it and she wanted to be with Holly all day and all night every day. Not just to protect her anymore, but just because she loved to be around Holly. But she was still insecure in herself. She didn’t want to bring it up because ultimately she was usually the one that messed up all her relationships in the end. Except her last one. She placed the full blame with Nick and Andy on that one.

“Gail?” Holly asked quietly, wondering what was going on through Gail’s head as she stood there with her eyes closed.

Gail’s eyes fluttered open. Her eyes immediately focused on Holly. “Sorry. I just…zoned out.”

Holly ran her fingers through Gail’s hair and kissed her again, “When do you go back on shift?”

“Tomorrow morning,” Gail slipped her arms around Holly’s middle and pulled her close. Her previous train of thought lead her to what she’d be doing if Holly ever left her. As she buried her face in the curve of Holly’s neck, Gail understood that she truly had no idea.

Gail decided to deal with her feelings like she usually did. She pushed them away and down. She took a step back and wrapped her arms around herself, “So, is this it?”

Holly looked around and nodded, “Yeah. I think so.”

Gail smiled, “Great. When do you wanna sign the lease?”

“Do you have twenty minutes?” Holly asked with a sly grin, “Because I had the manager get the lease together this morning. I just wanted to see what you thought before I signed.”

Gail was surprised that Holly took that much stock in her opinion since they hadn’t really even been officially dating that long. They hadn’t really even been friends that long.

Holly took Gail’s hand as they walked to the stairs. Gail loved how easily their hands fit together and how natural it felt. It was just like.

Gail sat next to Holly while she signed the lease and they ran into Andy on their way out of the building. Andy appeared to be going for a job.

“Hey,” Andy hugged Holly. “Looking at the apartment again.”

Holly held up the keys, “Just leased it.”

“Awesome,” Andy seemed genuinely excited. She straightened out her workout top. “Let me know if you need help moving in.”

Holly nodded, “Thanks. It’ll probably be soon.”

“This weekend?” Andy asked, “We could get the guys to come over and make a day of it. After we get you moved in, we can have dinner at my place.”

Holly glanced at Gail who shrugged. Gail was still having a slightly hard time being around Andy now that everything was back to normal. Holly grinned, “That sounds great. Just call me when you want to come over Saturday.”

Andy asked Holly about how her stitched held up while they went rock climbing and Holly told her that the stitches were fine, but her muscles were sore.

Andy agreed and smiled at Gail, “You on shift tomorrow morning?”

Gail nodded. “Yeah. Still on front desk.”

Andy shrugged, “You’re probably getting more action there than I did last night. It’s too cold for criminals so we have to freeze our asses off at speed checkpoints.”

Holly could sense that Gail was going to stay something snarky so Holly jumped in, “It’s getting kinda dark to jog alone isn’t it?”

Andy told her that it was just going to be a short run and she would be home and showered before it was dark. Then she invited the couple to the Penny at eight. Holly told her that they’d try to make it and Andy accepted that answer with a wide smile.

Gail glared at Holly as Andy trotted off. She was going to say something about Nick keeping Andy warm while they froze at the speed checkpoints, but Holly interrupted and she knew Holly knowingly stopped her.

“I know you’re not ready to forgive her,” Holly stated, when she noticed Gail’s glare. “I understand that.”

Gail was waiting for Holly to tell her that she needed to stop twisting the guilt knife into Andy and stop bringing up her relationship with Nick in a malicious way. But Holly didn’t add anything else. She just firmly held Gail’s hand as they walked through the neighborhood. Gail finally decided to ask, “You’re not going to tell me that I should try to forgive her or whatever?”

Holly shook her head. She stopped at a street corner although the crosswalk sign was beckoning them across the street. Holly turned to Gail. “I can’t tell you how you feel. You can only forgive her if you want to. You don’t have to be friends with her. You don’t even have to like her. Besides, we both know that you do what you want.” Holly offered a small smile which Gail returned. “All I ask is that in front of me you try to keep the snarks to a minimum?”

Gail looked over Holly’s face. There was a soft pleading in her eyes and Gail rolled her eyes at herself. She couldn’t believe that she was so in love with Holly that she’d agree to be civil to Andy. Then Gail got snared in Holly’s eyes, trapped and helpless to the adorable pleas for a cease-fire.

 “Fine,” Gail attempted to be grumpy in her answer, but Holly’s smile broke that attempt. Gail rolled her eyes at herself and smiled before kissing Holly. “Fine. I’ll try.”

“That is all I ask,” Holly smiled brightly.

Holly pulled Gail into a restaurant a few streets down and they had a lovely dinner together before deciding to go to the Penny. Dov and Chris had already invited them via text during their dinner so they decided to go hang out with their friends before heading home.

“I am not looking forward to packing up my apartment,” Holly confessed to Gail as they were walking back toward the Penny. They passed Andy and now Holly’s building on the way back to the Penny. Gail was just thinking that she could use the close proximity to the building to the Penny as an excuse to stay the night with Holly after a night of drinking.

Gail squeezed Holly’s hand, “I can do it for you.”

Holly shook her head, “No. I feel like it’s something I need to do. I’ve been running away from this since the shootings.”

“You’re not running away,” Gail stated. “You’re moving on. It’s something bad that happened to you and you’ve dealt with it. Now you’re moving on.”

“I don’t feel like I’ve dealt with it,” Holly sighed heavily, looking across the street at the park that was lit with soft street lamps.

Gail slowed her walk a little before stopping completely on the corner of the block where the Penny was located. She pulled Holly into her arms. She held her tight and closed her eyes, “It’ll get better. I don’t know when, but I promise it will.” She recalled her own abduction and how long it took her to get over it. But eventually she got back to normal.

Holly wanted to believe Gail, but she kept looking over her shoulder and in the shadows for something to jump out and grab her. She clung to Gail and found some solace in her embrace. Holly finally cleared her throat and added, “I start work again next week, with the stipulation that I keep seeing the district psychologist.”

“That’s good though right?” Gail asked, pulling away to look at Holly’s face. Holly didn’t seem so sure.

Holly shrugged, “I guess I’m provisionally mentally stable enough for someone whose job it is to cut open dead people.” She let out a hint of a smile.

That made Gail fully smiled. She grabbed Holly’s jacket and pulled Holly to her kissing her hard. They both smiled into the kiss, Holly’s hands finding their way to Gail’s face.

“Hey Peck!” Oliver’s voice came from the door of the bar, “Don’t make me arrest you two for public indecency.”

Gail broke away and turned around. She saw him smile jovially at her and hold the door open for Celery who waved at them. Holly waved back and took Gail’s hand as they moved to the door to follow Oliver and Celery inside.

“What can I get you ladies to drink?” Oliver asked as they walked in.

“Beer,” Gail stated.

Holly nodded, “Same.”

Oliver went to the bar while Celery went to the bathroom. Gail spotted Christ and Dov already sitting at the table. Gail pulled a chair out for Holly who sat down with a smile and Gail at next to her.

“Hey!” Chris smiled at Holly, “I heard you leased that apartment.”

Holly nodded, “I did.”

“If we all move into the building, it’ll be like a frat house,” Dov took a sip of his beer. “I think we should do it.”

Oliver dropped off Holly and Gail’s beer and patted Holly’s back, “If you don’t mind I’m going to go talk to the grown ups for a while.”

They all looked over his shoulder at the older detectives. Holly smiled, “Thanks for the drinks.”

“Celery wanted me to tell you something, but I forgot what it was,” Oliver told her, “I’ll send her over here when I can.”

“Okay,” Holly nodded, “Thanks.”

“It took Oliver six months to like me,” Chris noted. He looked to Holly, “I don’t know how you did it.”

Holly shrugged, “Getting abducted helps.” She grinned over her glass as everyone else laughed. She was glad they could laugh about it and she could joke about it. Maybe Gail was right. It would get better sooner than she thought.

As the night went on, they talked about work and everything outside of work. They talked about the parties that they could have at Holly’s new apartment after the Penny closed and she said that she’d probably need to buy a few murphy beds for everyone who would want to crash at her place after a long night at the Penny.

Gail said something about how no one would be allowed in Holly’s bedroom, but her and then Chris countered, “Why don’t you two just move in together? Then I can have my old bedroom back.”

Gail immediately grew quiet. Holly noticed and grew quiet as well, her smile fading. She frowned and saw Gail staring hard at the table. She decided to give Gail an out, although she didn’t know why Gail fell silent. She stood. “I’m going to go get the next round.”

When she was gone, Chris immediately apologized, “I’m so sorry. I didn’t know that was like a sore subject for you two.”

“It’s not,” Gail put her hands around her beer, “We haven’t talked about it. I’m not even sure she thought about it.”

“But you have,” Dov pointed out.

Gail shook her head, “It’s stupid.” She took a deep breath and hope Holly didn’t figure out why she had her sudden change in mood. She decided to chance a look over her shoulder and caught Holly looking back at her, concern all over her face.

Gail tried to break up the serious by crossing her eyes and sticking her tongue out at Holly. Holly chuckled until Andy walked up to the bar and stole her attention.

Gail cursed under her breath, “I’m so screwed.”


	19. Chapter 19

Steve made an appearance at the Penny. He stopped by the detective’s table before walking over to the Rookies’ table. His hands rested on Gail and Holly’s backs.

“Hey,” Steve greeted the women. He looked to Gail, “I saw Dad today at the admin building. He said that we’re going to have dinner at their house tomorrow. He’s cooking.”

“Oh god, he’s not trying to make that orange duck thing again?” Gail asked her brother.

Steve just smiled. “I don’t know, but I’m saving the pizza place’s number in my phone just in case.” He patted Holly’s back, “How are you feeling, Doctor?”

“Great,” Holly smiled. “I was cleared for work.”

“That’s great,” Steve seemed relieved, “They guy that they have in there now is so…bland.”

Holly chuckled, “I’ll be back at work on Monday.”

“Oh yeah, she’s moving in to a new apartment down the street,” Gail punched her brother’s shoulder, “You should bring the beer.”

Steve nodded and offered a smile to Holly, “I’ll be there.” Then he stood up straight and straightened his shirt, “Well, I’m going to go hang out with the grown-ups now. I’ll see you two tomorrow night.”

“Oooh,” Andy grinned, “Dinner with Superintendent and Inspector Peck?” Her eyes were focused on Holly.

Holly just nodded.

Gail shrugged, “It’s not a big deal.” She looked over at Holly with a reassuring smile, “It’s just dinner.” Gail didn’t think that Holly looked all that alarmed so she just slipped her arm around Holly’s back, resting it on the top of the back of her chair.

Holly smiled at Gail, not really feeling all that confident in the dinner, but knowing that it probably wasn’t going to be that bad considering that she saved Gail’s life not even half an hour before she met Gail’s mom.

They closed their tab at a decent hour and piled into Chris’s truck because he stopped drinking after his first beer so he could get everyone home.

“Just think,” Gail told Holly as she was sprawled across the backseat of the truck. “Next week, we can stumble to your apartment instead of riding in the back with Chris’s week old gym bag.”

Holly smiled and wrapped her arms around Gail. Gail leaned back into her, resting the back of her head on Holly’s shoulder. Holly had had enough to drink to feel daring. She moved her lips close to Gail’s ear and whispers, “Are you going to help me christen my new place?”

Gail melted into a puddle at the words. She loved Holly and knew it was going to take her time to heal, but she was having trouble fighting the naughty thoughts that kept entering her head. She tilted her head up to look over Holly’s face. There was no doubt. There was just a challenge.

Gail quirked an eyebrow, “Well we can’t have you living in an unchristened apartment. It just wouldn’t be right.” Gail put her foot on the door of the truck and used it to push herself up to kiss Holly. It was meant to be a baiting kiss, but Gail lost herself in Holly’s lips. She felt Holly’s fingers slip under the curtain of her hair, moving to the back of her neck, before Holly’s fingers plunged into her hair.

They didn’t notice the truck come to a stop until Chris threatened to spray them with a hose. Holly giggled and pulled a punch drunk Gail out of the truck.

When they got up to Gail’s bedroom, they both changed into comfortable clothes and fell into the bed. Holly tried to cover up a yawn just in case Gail was still up for fooling around, but Gail noticed. The blonde smiled and slipped her arms around Holly. Her arm was curled under Holly’s head and her opposite hand rested on Holly’s waist. Gail adjusted so that she was more comfortable on her side.

Holly bit her lip. She never felt more safe than she did in Gail’s arm. She had had a lifetime of uncertainty. From foster home to foster home. No family to lean on. Friends that came and went. But all that insecurity drifted away when Gail’s hands touched her.

Gail was quickly falling toward sleep. She moved her face toward Holly’s and pressed their foreheads together, “I love you.”

No matter how many times Gail told her, it always felt like the first time to Holly. She always felt a rush of butterflies when Gail confessed her feelings. Holly dropped a sweet kiss on Gail’s lips, “I love you too.”

They fell asleep shortly after that, neither one able to hold onto the waking world any longer.

Holly was awakened by the cold of the room creeping through her. She was immediately aware that Gail wasn’t in the bed before she opened her eyes. Holly felt blindly around the bed and pulled the blanket up her body. She must have kicked it off when she was trying to find Gail’s warmth in her sleep.

When she heard slow, deliberate footsteps on the floor she muttered, “Come back to bed.”

Gail looked down at Holly, curled up with her pillow in Holly’s arms. Holly’s hair was everywhere and her foot was sticking out of the bottom of the blanket. Gail tickled the bottom of Holly’s foot, causing it to retreat under the blanket.

Holly whined, “Gail.”

Gail crawled up the foot of the bed until she was hovering over Holly. She gently lowered herself down so that she was partially laying on Holly, “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

“You didn’t,” Holly slowly opened her eyes, “I got cold.”

“Sorry,” Gail kissed Holly’s shoulder, “I have to go to work.”

Holly stretched as she looked at the clock. With a heavy sigh, she knew that Gail wasn’t going to be able to stay with her all day. It was heavily disappointing every time she thought about it.

“Are you going to be okay?” Gail rested her chin on Holly’s shoulder and looked earnestly down at Holly. She was still extremely worried about leaving Holly alone. She was worried that Holly was going to have a panic attack and no one was going to be around.

Holly nodded automatically. It was just her default answer even if she didn’t mean it. This time, Holly was determined to mean it. She rolled onto her back so that she could look up at Gail.

Gail allowed Holly to guide her down for a sweet good morning kiss. Gail pressed her hand to Holly’s jaw and ran her thumb over Holly’s cheek. “Any nightmares?”

“Just one,” Holly took a deep breath. When she woke up and felt Gail all around her, she was okay again and then went back to sleep.

Gail smiled hopefully, “That’s better than usual right?”

Holly nodded. “Yup.”

Holly asked Gail if she could escort her to grab some coffee before work. Gail was glad that Holly asked and she waited for Holly to get dressed.

“Can I borrow that green scarf you had on like two weeks ago?” Holly called from the bathroom. “We were at that, um, antique store?”

“Oh yeah,” Gail stood up and went to her closet. She stood there for a moment just looking at the clothes in her closet. Many of Holly’s things were now hanging in her closet. She touched one of the sleeves of Holly’s blouses and pulled it to her nose. The smell of Holly’s perfume made her smile.

When she heard Holly walking back to her room, she quickly grabbed the scarf and jumped out of the closet. She didn’t want to get caught being creepy in the closet. Holly rounded the corner into the room and smiled when she saw Gail.

Gail looped the scarf around Holly’s neck. She kept hold of both of the ends and used it to pull Holly into a kiss. “Do you still want to do dinner with my parents?”

Holly grinned, “We already said we were going.”

“But we could skip it and do something fun instead,” Gail moved her lips close to Holly’s, but didn’t kiss her. She smiled slyly, “We could go to your new place and lay in front of the fireplace.”

“What, on the floor?” Holly grinned back.

“It would probably be safest that way,” Gail finally went in for the kiss.

Holly knew that Gail meant and it was tempting, but she didn’t want to bail on Gail’s parents after they had already promised to show up. “I think we should wait until I get a bed in that bedroom.”

Gail hummed against Holly’s lips, “I love your bed.”

“I know,” Holly chuckled, pulling away from Gail. She straightened out some of Gail’s hair and then tied her scarf.

They got coffee and muffins on the way to the police station. They walked in, still eating with their coffee in their hands.

“Hey, Gail,” Nick walked in behind them. “Dr. Stewart.”

Gail just kind of waved and nodded because she had a mouthful. Holly smiled, “Hey Nick.”

“You working today?” he asked politely.

“No,” Holly shook her head, “I’m just walking Gail in.”

Nick peeled off of the group into the men’s locker room with a “Have a good day,” to both ladies.

“You’ll definitely be off in time for dinner?” Holly asked Gail who polished off her coffee.

Gail nodded, “Definitely. I’ll just go by the apartment and we can get ready.” She tossed her empty cup into the garbage and readjusted her hold on her bag. “Are you sure you’re going to be okay?”

“I’m sure,” Holly assured her. “I am going to the bookstore when I leave here and then I’ll probably just head to the apartment and read.”

“Taking it easy today?” Andy walked up behind Holly and asked.

Holly turned around with a smile, “Yeah. I’m saving my energy for this weekend.”

“Just tell me when to be there,” Andy touched Holly’s arms and back into the locker room, “C’mon Peck. Shift’s a-waitin’.”

Gail just rolled her eyes. “I’m sorry. I have to go.”

Holly shook her head, “Don’t be sorry. I’ll be fine.”

And she was. When she got to the bookstore, she smiled as she walked around the literature. She loved the smell of old books. She read somewhere once that there was a specific name for the smell and the smell was just the reaction of something in the books to age or decay in the materials or something. It didn’t matter exactly what it was. Holly just loved it.

She bought more books than she probably could read in a day, but one of her favorite things about books, was that they’re always there when she needs them.

After she cleaned the kitchen in the apartment and did some of her laundry, Holly was finally able to sit down on the couch with a cup of tea and start reading.

Something about the book she was reading reminded her of a book that she already had. She wasn’t sure the name of it, but she could see the colors of the book in her bookshelf back at her old apartment. The cover was off-white with muted colored letters. It was witty and charming. As she thought more about it, she wanted to read it again.

But that required going back to her old apartment. Then she thought about how she was going to have to spend hours in there this weekend packing her things. It wasn’t going to be pleasant. She wasn’t sure it was going to be bearable.

She wanted to know what it was like going back though. To that point in her life, Holly had been a vector, traveling in a straight line, never going back to anywhere she’d been before. Today, though, she was wondering what it was like to go back.

Holly took the last sip of tea. She slowly closed the book she was reading and set it on the table. Then she stood. Holly grabbed her jacket and her purse. Then she walked out the door.

She felt a phantom weight on her chest as she took a cab to the apartment building. She knew that she shouldn’t drive herself. She was just going to get the book and leave.

When she walked through the door, she clenched her fists until they felts too weak to hold anything. The security guard looked surprised to see her and then sympathetic. She tried to exchange pleasantries with him, but she kept looking down the hallway where she was dragged, barefoot and screaming. As she neared the elevator, she could see that wall that she was slammed up against and handcuffed on. There was still police tape over the door of the apartment where Ford forced her inside and broke out the window. Where she set up the trip wire that was designed to blow anyone who crossed it – blow Gail into a million little pieces.

“Dr. Stewart?” the security guard asked gently, trying not to startle her.

Holly shook out of her recurring nightmare and smiled flippantly, “Sorry.”

“Are you alright?” he asked, “Maybe I could go up and get the book for you.”

Holly didn’t remember telling him why she was back, but she shook her head anyway. “I’m fine. I probably need to look around the apartment anyway. I got another apartment closer to work.” She grimaced internally knowing that it was stupid to try to make up a lame excuse as to why she was leaving to a man that had watched the smoke fill the stairwells and the chaos of a mass evacuation.

He gave her an understanding smile. “Well buzz me if you need anything.” He patted her shoulder and she smiled back in appreciation.

The second she stepped on the elevator, it felt like the walls were closing in on her. The doors couldn’t open on her old floor soon enough. She stumbled out of the elevator and found herself in her hallway. She kept her head down as she walked toward her apartment door.

For some stupid reason, she remembered what the carpet in the hallway felt like under her feet when she and Gail were running down the hallway to the stairs. It felt rougher that she would have thought. She’d never walked barefoot into the hallway, but she expected such beautiful, plush carpet to feel good. It didn’t. It felt like running on dry grass, all crunchy and brown.

Holly had to search her keychain for a moment in front of her door before she opened it. It shouldn’t have been as hard as it was to walk in. Allof the trauma that happened to her, happened downstairs so her apartment should still be okay.

But it wasn’t. In her apartment she spent sleepless nights and anxious days waiting for the other shoe to drop. She had officers in her apartment protecting her because she was in danger. Holly felt her anxiety spike just standing in the living room of the only place in the world that used to feel like home. It felt strange now. Strange and wrong.

She had never felt terror like she experienced in that building. She had never felt that out of control. She’d never felt that helpless. Holly could remember more details about that day than she could about any other even in her life. Given enough samples, she could identify the deodorant that Ford was wearing or the kind of cigarettes that were smoked inside of his car. She could describe the cold metal against her wrists, digging into her skin every time Ford had to pull to a stop. She could hear every single bullet that was fired in the police station. She could see the perspiration on Ford’s forehead as he stood over Gail and the slight crunch of misplaced paper under his boot as he shifted his weight over her.

Instantaneously, Holly was completely overwhelmed. It was all coming back at once. Every smell, every broken piece of glass, every loud noise came flooding back into her mind until she couldn’t think of anything else. Holly was frozen in place, reliving every terrifying moment of the entire ordeal. Holly tried to fight it off, but kept losing. Then suddenly, her knees gave out.

Gail quietly burst through the door of the apartment. She stopped in the doorway with her hand on the knob and her other hand on the doorframe, bracing herself for what she might find. She found that the gun on her hip would not be needed. No one was attacking Holly, but what she saw in front of her hurt her a million times more than anything anyone else could do to her.

Holly was sitting in the middle of the living room, a book clutched to her chest. Silent tears slid in a steady stream down Holly’s face as she stared at the ground. She didn’t even seem to really register that Gail had entered the area.

Gail swallowed her own tears, knowing that this was not the time for her to break down. She quietly closed the door and walked slowly over to Holly. Gail didn’t know what to do. She didn’t know if she could hug Holly or just touch her arm.

Gail sucked in her bottom lip and sat down in front of Holly. She kept her movements slow as to not startle Holly. Then Gail scooted a little closer to Holly, until she could easily put her hand on Holly’s leg. Gail was scared that Holly’s hadn’t acknowledged her yet. She just needed to know that Holly was still there, so she quietly asked, “Holly?”

Holly blinked at the sound of her name and finally seemed to jerk back into reality. When Holly saw Gail, she immediately averted her eyes back to a different spot on the floor. After a long moment, Holly hoarsely answered, “I shouldn’t have come back.”

Gail didn’t reply. She just pulled Holly into her arms and cradled her head firmly against her chest, trying to protect her from things that she couldn’t shoot at. She had never felt more useless. All she could do was hold Holly and squeeze her eyes closed tightly, trying to keep her own tears back.

She couldn’t hold them back anymore when Holly’s entire body started shaking with near-silent sobs.


	20. Chapter 20

Finally Holly felt like she couldn’t cry anymore. She just leaned on Gail, staring into space. Eventually she felt the need to speak and offered, “You’re still supposed to be at work.”

“I left early,” Gail smoothed out Holly’s hair and kissed the top of her head.

“How did you know I was here?” Holly could barely speak, but she needed to know. She needed to distract herself.

Gail rested her chin on Holly’s head, “The security guard called Marlo. Marlo called Andy. Andy called me.”

“I’m sorry,” Holly shook her head pushing up so that she was supporting her own weight. “It was stupid of me to come here.”

“It’s not stupid,” Gail assured her, rubbing Holly’s back. “And you don’t have to be sorry.”

Holly looked down at the book in her hands. “I just came to get this.”

Gail looked down on the book on Holly’s hands. She recognized it as one that she bought Holly when she was in the hospital. Gail kissed Holly’s temple. “Do you wanna go?”

Holly looked around. She wasn’t actually sure. Coming here once was hard enough. She wasn’t sure she could come back to actually pack up. She explained this to Gail who continued to rub her back comfortingly.

“I can come back later and pack up your stuff,” Gail offered. “You don’t have to be here.”

Holly took a deep breath. “Maybe- maybe we can come back tomorrow. Together.”

“As long as you’re sure,” Gail wiped the tears off of her own face before doing so to Holly’s. “We’ll leave if you get uncomfortable.”

“Thank you,” Holly sniffled. She started shifting around on the ground and stood up. She helped Gail up and made a quick run upstairs to grab some of her more essential things. Gail was behind her the whole way, standing guard at the doors and listening for any disturbances there may be. Holly wasn’t the only one having flashbacks, but Gail’s mostly just kept her on guard and made her need to keep Holly in sight.

Once Holly had a duffel bag packed, she slung it over her shoulder and took Gail’s hand. When the stepped out onto the first floor, Holly felt Gail’s grip on her hand become firmer. She knew Gail was determined not to lose her again. This caused Holly to start worrying about having all the police officers that experienced some kind of trauma in the building just to help her move. She didn’t want them to go what Gail was going through. She certainly didn’t want it for Gail.

“I think I’m just going to hire movers,” Holly confessed. “I can’t make everyone go in there again.”

Gail was a little shocked at Holly’s concern for all of the other officers. Not that Holly wasn’t a kind hearted person, it’s just that Holly had been sitting in the floor of her living room crying for over an hour and she was concerned about the other officers. Before she could answer, Holly added, “I don’t think I can ask you to go back either.”

Gail pulled out the keys to Chris’s truck and swung Holly around so that Holly was standing in front of her. “You never asked. And I’m still going with you.”

Holly looked at Gail, unsmiling. She looked over Gail’s face and studied her. Part of her was trying to figure out a way to go alone and part of her was wondering how she ever got someone so selfless to love her. She slowly moved into Gail, hugging her close. She leaned into Gail feeling like Gail was the only thing holding her up at the moment. Finally she broke the swirl of car engines and foot traffic around them, “What time do we have to be at your parents’?” Holly took a step back finally able to stand on her own. She pushed her hair out of her face and adjusted her glasses.

“We’re not going,” Gail waved off the question.

Holly smirked and took Gail’s hand, “Don’t think you’re getting out of dinner with your parents just because your girlfriend is an emotional mess.”

Gail tentatively smiled, seeing peeks of the version of Holly that she knew before Ford. “Are you sure?”

Holly nodded as they crossed the street and walked right up to Chris’s truck. Gail unlocked the passenger’s door open first and opened it for Holly to get in. “Dinner is at eight.”

Holly slid into the car, “Great. Then I have time to shower.”

Gail smiled, glad that Holly was feeling well enough to go to dinner with her parents after what just happened up in the apartment. She figured that Holly would be okay for the rest of the night as long as nothing brought back any memories. Her parents’ house was about as far from the Ford incident as she could get Holly without going back to Niagara.

“Gail?” Holly asked, standing back up out of the truck. “Are you okay?”

Gail didn’t realize that she had been standing at the door of the truck as long as she had. She shook out of it and nodded, “Yeah. I totally just zoned out.” She quickly kissed Holly and allowed her to get back into the truck.

Then she walked to the other side and got in. Holly looked over at Gail and stated, “It was nice of Chris to let you borrow his truck.”

“That reminds me,” Gail grinned as she turned on the truck. “I should probably call Chris and tell him that I have his truck.”

When they got back to the apartment, Holly got into the shower and Gail laid on the bed. She looked toward the door to her bedroom and knew Holly was naked a few feet from her bed, under the warm spray of water. She had never been with a woman before, but she was aching to be with Holly. She just wanted to touch Holly in places that made her squirm, and scream. She wanted to explore the wonderful woman she had fallen in love with.

Holly walked back into the bedroom in a towel and Gail couldn’t avert her eyes fast enough. Holly walked straight to the closet, paying no mind to Gail. “What are you going to wear?” Holly asked from the closet. “Is this like a formal thing or are we going to drink beer and eat pizza?”

“Steve is planning for pizza,” Gail quelled her libido enough to answer neutrally, “But if my dad’s plan goes through, it’ll probably be some kind of herb crusted something with roasted something elses.”

Holly peeked out of the closet and looked at Gail, “You are so helpful.”

Gail stuck her tongue out at Holly before the doctor disappeared back into the closet. A few minutes later, Holly stepped out of the closet in some cotton shorts and a sweatshirt.

“I have no problems with you wearing that to dinner,” Gail rolled onto her side and watched Holly move to the bed, her hair still damp and curving into natural waves as it dried.

Holly sat at the foot of the bed and said, “I have to put lotion on before I can get dressed.” She pointed to the nightstand, “Can you hand it to me, please?”

Gail reached over to pick it up without sitting up. She handed it to Holly who stretched out her legs in front of her. Holly looked at what was left of the wound on her leg. She examined it closely. “Damn, that’s gonna scar over.”

“Oh no,” Gail droned, “Your perfect, hopelessly long legs are marred by something that no one can see unless they’re looking for it.”

Holly smiled, taking the compliment that Gail hid in her snark. She put the lotion in her hand and started massaging it into her legs. Gail watched intently as Holly’s hands ran up and down her long tan legs. Gail had to admit that she wished she was the one lotioning Holly’s skin.

Holly thoughtfully looked over her legs and then moved her to arms. “I think I’m going to call movers. We can go pack up the important things tomorrow and then the movers can get at everything else.”

Gail nodded, snapping out of her sexual haze and was immediately in the conversation with Holly, “If that’s what you feel like you have to do.” She sat up and moved closer to Holly. She took over rubbing in the lotion on Holly’s arm. She took care to gently massage every single one of Holly’s fingers and then moved to her other arm.

“I just…” Holly took a deep breath. She thought she knew why she was doing things, but she found herself constantly second guessing herself. She shook her head, “I don’t know.”

“You don’t have to know,” Gail assured her. “Just do what makes you feel better, okay? That’s what matters.”

Holly averted her eyes, “I just don’t want anyone else to be – anyone else to react or feel adversely. You know? I don’t even want you to go back there because it can’t be associated with good things for you either. Or any of the other officers.”

“If we avoided places in the city where bad things happened to us, we wouldn’t leave our apartments,” Gail mentioned, turning Holly’s hand over and rubbing lotion into her palm. “We’ll be fine if you want us there and we’ll stay away if you want us to. We can just help you move into your new place or we can have a barbeque or something.”

“A barbeque?” Holly asked, watching Gail finish yet still hold onto her hand. Gail held Holly’s hand between both of her own.

Gail nodded with a smile, “We’re kinda famous for them.”

Holly smiled, “That sounds fun.”

Gail leaned forward and kissed Holly. “You can think about it and let me know tomorrow okay? Our last barbeque was thrown with twenty minutes notice because Dov went to the liquor store and got a great deal on a keg.”

They took their time getting dressed since Gail had taken a half day off of work. They spent half an hour laying in bed and talking. Then Holly picked up the book Gail got her. Gail confessed that she hadn’t actually read the book. She just bought it because it seemed like something Holly would like.

Holly cracked open the book and rested her head on a stack of pillow. She softly read Gail the first page of one of the short stories in the book. Gail moved closer to Holly. She rested her head on Holly’s shoulder and picked up Holly’s arm, placing it behind her head and around her shoulders. Holly smiled, pausing briefly before continuing. She stroked Gail’s hair while she read the next three short stories to Gail, who contently listened.

It wasn’t something that Gail ever thought she’d do. She certainly didn’t think it was something that she would like, but she could listen to Holly talk all day. She liked the way that sometimes Holly’s brain raced ahead of her eyes and she stumbled over her words. She liked the way that Holly’s voice would fluctuate with the emotions of the story. When something sad was happening, Holly would talk low and quietly and when something happy was happening, her voice would fly, light and quick.

Holly kept meticulous track of time and an hour before they had to arrive, she closed the book.

They got dressed easily and took Holly’s car to Gail’s parents’ house. At first Holly was daunted by the house. It was large and not something she’d been before she went to medical school. She was used to small houses and apartments. When she was young she couldn’t afford that kind of opulence and now that she could afford it, she didn’t have any use for it.

Gail took Holly’s hand when Holly hesitated in the driveway. Gail asked, “How are your feet?”

“They’re fine,” Holly nodded.

Gail kissed her softly, but quickly, “C’mon.” She tugged Holly into motion and they walked right in the front door. Gail called, “Mom? Dad?”

The first person into the room was Gail’s dad. He was dressed casually in a polo and slacks. There was a dishtowel over his shoulder and an oven mitt on his hand when he walked to them. He hugged Gail first and then Holly. “It’s good to see you again Holly.”

“You too, Inspector,” Holly answered with a smile.

He smiled, “I’m not wearing a badge. You can call me Bill.” He led the way back to the kitchen, calling down a hallway as he passed. “Elaine, Gail and Holly are here.” When they got to the kitchen and turned to the women, “I opened this bottle of wine to breathe half an hour ago. Would you ladies like a glass?”

Holly and Gail both agreed and went to sit at the breakfast bar as Bill poured. Holly ran her fingers over the bar figuring that it was actual granite with actual stone accents behind the stove. Everything around her was on the highest end of the quality spectrum. Everything was real and authentic. It made her mildly uncomfortable.

“How are your feet?” Bill asked as he bent down to check something in the oven.

“As good as new,” Holly answered, surprised by the question. She kept her hands around her glass of wine and felt Bill and Gail’s eyes on her.

Bill stood up and picked up his own glass of wine, “I’m not too sure about your other injuries, but the glass in the feet is something that I did hear a lot about. You’re a living legend, Dr. Stewart.”

Holly looked to Gail who just smiled a proud smile. “She’s like Superman, but better.”

“Oh no,” Holly shook her head, not used to this kind of praise. “I – I didn’t…do anything.”

Bill smiled at his daughter’s girlfriend. He did love humility in a person. He figured that that would balance well with Gail’s occasional lack of it.

“Sorry,” Elaine walked into the room. She kissed her daughter’s cheek and hugged Holly, “I was talking to the mayor.”

“Golf Saturday?” Bill asked, digging a cutting board out of the cupboard and setting it on the counter.

“Sunday,” Elaine answered, pouring herself a glass of wine. Immediately her business demeanor was gone and she smiled warmly at Holly, “How are you feeling?”

“Great,” Holly answered, praying for Steve, Traci, and Leo to arrive soon so the attention would stop being about her.

Gail rubbed Holly’s back supportively and moved her chair closer to Holly’s. Apparently Gail wasn’t done with her parents gushing over Holly, “Did I tell you that Holly wrote a book?”

“Oh yeah?” Elaine asked, “What’s it called?”

Holly shot a disapproving look to an amused Gail before answering, “Coronary Arteriosclerosis: Analysis of an Autopsy.” Holly ducked her head, “I didn’t pick the name. The publisher did. There’s another one that’s with the editor now. Hopefully they’ll name it something more exciting.”

“That is impressive,” Bill mentioned. Elaine agreed and asked Holly how long she’d been working on her books. Holly didn’t get to answer because the front door opened.

Holly breathed a sigh of relief when she heard Steve call out to his family. She deflated onto the counter while Bill and Elaine went to greet Steve, Traci, and Leo.

“You’re doing great,” Gail chuckled and rubbed Holly’s back, “Just keep drinking and the night will get more fun.”

Steve and Traci greeted Gail and Holly. Then Traci introduced Leo to Gail and Holly. Leo stuck close to his mom, but responded to all the questions presented to him. Steve walked around the bar and talk to his mom about something and Bill called Gail to help with something in the oven. Traci sat picked up the open bottle of wine and refilled Holly’s glass before filling her own. “How’s it going?”

“I’m so glad you’re here,” Holly quietly told Traci, “I’m all out of material.”

Traci grinned, “Already? How long have you been here?”

Holly looked at her phone, “Half an hour.” She shrugged, “I spend most of my days in the morgue. I’m not exactly full of excited stories.”

“Yeah well, I’ll be hard pressed to find a story that would impress this family. This is over half a century of police experience in that family,” Traci offered up her glass for a toast, “Good luck.”

“Good luck,” Holly clinked her glass to Traci’s and paused when the glass was a few centimeters from her lips, “And god help us.” 


	21. Chapter 21

After a smooth dinner, everyone moved to the living room. Wine changed to coffee and Bill started a fire in the fireplace. Gail had taken a place on the love seat, draping her legs across the entire sofa while Holly was in the bathroom. When Holly returned, Gail lifted her legs up and let Holly sit down. Holly rested her arms across Gail’s knees, not minding that Gail was using her as an ottoman.

Steve took Leo up to his old bedroom to see if they could dig up some of his old action figures, leaving Traci to fend for herself. She sat uncomfortably in the couch while Elaine sat in the armchair and Bill leaned on the arm next to her.

“So what are you doing for the holidays Traci?” Elaine asked politely when there was a lull in the natural conversation.

Traci took a sip of her coffee, “I’m taking Leo over to my mom’s house Christmas day. I guess Christmas Eve it’ll just be me and Leo.” She glanced over at Gail hoping that her fellow officer would help her out, but Gail seem entranced by Holly’s hair. She ran her fingers through it and then twirled it around.

“Well we have an annual Christmas Eve dinner,” Elaine stated with a self-approving nod of her head, “You’re more than welcome to come.” After Traci thanked her, she turned to Holly who was had been absently tracing invisible lines on Gail’s jeans over her knees. “What about you, Dr. Stewart?”

Holly looked up slightly alarmed, but quickly shook the alarmed look off of her face. “I don’t know yet,” Holly shrugged. “I don’t have any plans. I might pick up a shift at the morgue.”

“You’re not spending Christmas with your family?” Bill asked, seeming genuinely concerned.

Holly shook her head, “I don’t really have a family. I mean my friends are my family, but I don’t have any…blood relatives.” She wasn’t sure that she wanted to explain how she came to be without family, so she just ended with that. She knew that everyone in the room had access to police records and could dig into her past if they wanted to. She was always happy not knowing so she didn’t elaborate.

“I’m sorry,” Bill expelled warmly. “But you’re always welcome here. It’s always nice to have new people.”

“Thank you,” Holly answered noncommittally. She wasn’t sure if Gail wanted to spend the holiday together or if even if she did, maybe Gail wanted to do something without her family.

When the conversation turned away from Holly, Gail took Holly’s hands and started playing with them. She ran her fingers up and down Holly’s palm and inner forearm tickling her skin. She smiled at the way Holly giggled quietly and retracted her arm.

Holly looked at Gail with a raised eyebrow. She was trying not to smile at Gail, but was failing miserably. Gail just kept teasing Holly’s normally skilled hands. Gail just kept tickling Holly’s hands until Holly just crossed her arms, hiding her hands away from Gail.

“Cheater,” Gail whispered and then asked her mom if there was any pie leftover.

Traci immediately offered to go get it and disappeared into the kitchen. Of course Bill stood up and walked in after her to help with the plates.

Holly was finally comfortable around Gail’s mom to show Gail a tiny bit of affection in front of her. She rested her head on Gail’s shoulder and immediately felt Gail’s hand in her hair. “Are you tired?” Gail asked softly so that only Holly could hear her.

Holly wanted to say no so that Gail didn’t have to leave, but she was exhausted, physically and emotionally. She just kept her head in its place knowing that Gail would know what it meant.

“Mom,” Gail directed across the room. “We’re gonna go home. It’s been a long day and we have a long day tomorrow.”

“Oh?” Elaine asked, wondering what was going on because Gail hardly told her anything.

Gail moved her legs off of Holly and sat up straight, “Holly’s moving into a new place. Her old one is…” She didn’t have to tell her mother and she didn’t know how to word it without Holly feeling worse about moving. She just left her sentence hanging and everyone in the room knew what it meant.

“You know your father has a bad back, but I can come help,” Elaine stood with the other two women. “And your brother can help.”

“He’s already going to be there,” Gail told her mom.

Gail called a goodbye up the stairs to her brother and then hugged Traci promising to see her tomorrow. Holly apologized to everyone in the room, but they all told her not to worry about it. Holly still felt bad about wanting to leave when they got into her car. As they walked to the car Holly slipped her keys into Gail’s hand because she wasn’t feeling up to it.

Gail worried about Holly all the way home, but didn’t ask any questions. In fact the drive back to the apartment was silent. Gail unlocked the door and let Holly go in first. Holly made her way straight to Gail’s room and Gail followed. Holly peeled off her shirt intent on changing in to something more comfortable. As she walked to the closet, Gail sat down on the bed and called, “Let me check your stitches first.”

Holly walked back out of the closet with a shirt in hand. She stood in front of Gail and swallowed hard knowing that seeing her stitches affect Gail in such a deep way. There was no infection or discoloration. Absolutely no cause for any kind of alarm. Gail smiled at the wounds and looked up at Holly. Holly looked nervous so Gail lowered her head and gently kiss the skin of Holly’s stomach. Gail had been thinking about doing that for a while, basically every time that Holly stood half naked in front of her for a wound inspection, and finally felt like she was at a place with Holly that she could.

Holly’s eyes fluttered closed and her lips parted slightly. She inhaled the cool air of the room. Her heart started racing. Her hands moved into Gail’s hair as Gail kissed a circle around each wound, careful not to put too much pressure on the deep bruises as her lips grazed over them.

Gail sat up straighter and let Holly draw her in for a deep, slow kiss. Gail poured herself into the kiss, finally feeling like she could let most of her walls down, even possibly all of them.

Gail broke the kiss and swung Holly around so that the doctor fell onto the bed, sprawled out onto her back. Gail grinned and reached for Holly’s belt, “I need to check the stiches on your leg too.”

Holly just nodded taking shallow breaths and watched Gail unbuckle her belt, then unbutton her pants. Gail easily slid her pants off and sat on her knees between Holly’s legs, examining the stitches. Something about the way Gail was doing it was innocently enough and it made Holly smile. Gail pretended to be so cold, but she was just guarded.

Gail looked over the stitches in the fading light from the windows. Holly’s leg was almost completely healed. She moved down the bed and checked the bottoms of Holly’s feet. The bottoms of her feet were starting to scar over and Holly was self-conscious about them, not wanting Gail to see them. Holly pulled her feet away and got up off of the bed.

“Hey,” Gail grabbed Holly’s hips and turned her around. “What’s wrong?”

“They’re my only injury that I can see without using a mirror,” Holly folded her arms in front of herself and adjusted her glasses. “They’re gross.”

Gail frowned hard. She pulled Holly’s arms apart and rested her hands firmly on Holly’s lips. Gail looked up at Holly, making sure that Holly was looking at her eyes when she said, “I love you. All of you. All of your scars and all of your stitches.”

Holly used her tongue to draw her lower lip between her teeth. Her eyes started to water behind her glasses. She could honestly say that she never felt as loved as she did right then. She had had people pity her. She had had people lust after her and she had had people love her, but none of those people loved her the way that Gail did.

Holly locked her arms around Gail’s neck and held her as close as she could. She wasn’t sure what would convey to Gail that she could feel all the love Gail was forcing at her. She could feel it all around her when Gail looked at her. Holly knew that Gail respected actions more than words, but at the moment all she had were the words. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” Gail promised with a strong conviction. She knew it beyond anything else she ever knew.

It took a moment for Holly to pull away. She didn’t kiss Gail because she wiped the tears from her eyes instead, glad that she didn’t actually start crying. She had always been taught that crying got you sent away. The older kids in the foster homes told her that so Holly was never really comfortable crying.

Gail stood up, scooting Holly a little back and stayed between Holly and the bed. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, this was not the time for their first time. They were both tired and emotional. Gail wrapped her arms around Holly and just held her even though Holly’s arms were folded between them. Gail could feel a chill starting to creep up Holly’s half naked body and flashed back to how cold she was when Ford took her.

Gail slowly loosened her hold on Holly and stepped away. “C’mon. Let’s get you some clothes.”

After they both changed, they crawled under the covers and tangled themselves together in the middle of the bed.

“Are you really going to work on Christmas?” Gail asked softly, into the dark. It had grown so dim in the room that Gail could barely make out Holly’s eyes.

Holly shrugged, “I was thinking about it. I got a few invites to parties and stuff, like I always do. Apparently being the sad orphan kid means everyone is obligated to invite you to Christmas.”

“You don’t have to come to my parents’ thing,” Gail added. “And if you’re not going to be there. I’m definitely not going to be there. I’m pretty sure I can pick up a shift at 15.”

“You have to spend Christmas with your family,” Holly looked over at Gail, trying to catch her eyes using the sparse light coming through the windows.

Gail sighed, “Christmas Eve isn’t just me and my family. It’s my family and fifty of the city’s most influential politicians.”

“What happens when the politicians leave?” Holly asked, and felt like she already knew the answer.

Gail knew that Holly knew and was reluctant to tell her. Finally she huffed, “We all sit around the fire together and open some presents.” She felt guilty that she had a Christmas tradition with her statistically perfect family while Holly was contemplating spending the holiday in a refrigerator with dead people. Then she thought about how she had pictured this coming holiday. She saw her dad sitting in the armchair and her mom sipping sherry, sitting on the arm next to her dad. Her dad had his arm around her mom. Steve was laying on the loveseat admiring his new watch. Then Gail looked next to herself in this hypothetical holiday and saw Holly. She had her arm around Holly and was watching Holly pretend to like the police related present that Steve got her.

“What can I say to get you to Christmas with my family?” Gail asked, bluntly.

Holly paused and swallowed. She knew that she only needed to hear one thing. “Tell me that you want me there.”

“I want you there,” Gail stated gripping Holly’s hands tighter and pulling her closer. “Please.”

Holly ducked her head and her forehead came gently to rest on Gail’s collarbone. There was something so sweet and simple about Gail’s request. It made Holly feel like Gail wanted her around, no matter who else was around. It was a strange and exhilarating feeling for. She inhaled then exhaled. Then did it again. Then she tilted her head up and kissed Gail’s neck. “I’ll be there.”

Gail’s hand buried itself in Holly’s hair and she tilted her head down to rest her forehead on Holly’s. She moved down to capture Holly’s lips in a sweet and sleepy kiss. “Thank you.” She kissed Holly again. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight,” Holly echoed and closed her eyes, content to fall asleep with Gail, sharing the same pillow.

When Holly woke up, Gail was rolling over to pick up her ringing phone. Holly looked at the clock on the nightstand and groaned when she saw it was three in the morning. Holly pushed her face into her pillow and rolled over. Gail barked into the phone, “What.”

Over the silence of the apartment, Holly could hear Dov say, “Damn I was hoping Holly would pick up. We need a ride.”

“Are you drunk?” Gail asked, flopping back on the bed.

“I was an hour ago when I told Chris I’d take him to this amazing fishing hole,” Dov explained, “And then I got us lost. We found our way back to the highway, but we ran out of gas.”

“I should let you freeze to death,” Gail looked over to see if Holly was awake. Holly knew from the conversation that Gail was about to go pick up the boys, but she didn’t let Gail know she was awake. She was warm and didn’t want to move until the very last second.

Dov quickly added, “I know you should, but you love us even if you won’t admit it and you need us to pay our thirds of the rent.”

“I need a better reason than that. I have a girlfriend who is about to move into a great apartment,” Gail huffed and flopped back onto the bed, pulling the covers over her head. “I could move in with her.”

There was a rustle on the line and Chris spoke, “I will personally move all of your stuff into Holly’s place if you come get us right now.”

Holly reached up and took the phone from Gail, “We’ll be there as soon as we can. Text Gail the directions.”

“Thanks Holly,” Chris replied, extremely relieved.

Holly hung up and handed the phone to Gail. Holly pushed the blankets off of herself and stood up. She looked around for something warm to wear and grabbed a hoodie off of Gail’s dresser that said ‘Police’.

Gail was a little terrified that Holly had heard the part about her moving in. Well, obviously Holly could hear everything that was being said because she just told Chris that they’d pick him and Dov up. Gail just sat there, quiet and still like that would make Holly forget everything she just heard.

However, Gail didn’t need to worry. Holly wasn’t planning on bringing it up. Holly hit Gail with a pillow, “Am I going to have to go pick them up myself?”

That got Gail moving. Gail got out of bed and pulled on a hoodie and a coat. Then she grabbed her keys and followed Holly out the door.

As they drove out of town, Holly could feel the tension between them and she knew exactly why it was. She had had enough and finally broached the subject in playful way, “So why does Dov want you to move in with me so bad? Is he going to ask Chloe to move in with him?”

Gail kept her eyes on the road. She got what Holly was getting at. She just swallowed trying to carefully plan her words like her mother taught her to. Trying to find a way to make every word count, “No. He thinks it’s too soon. He likes the way things are going right now and doesn’t want to…impose too much of himself on…Chloe. His last relationship was – they weren’t at the same place and Dov got hurt. Now he just wants to make sure that they’re in sync before making any big moves.”

Holly smiled and reached over to take Gail’s hand. She knew exactly what Gail was saying, however thinly veiled it was. “I’m sure Chloe understands and she just wants you to know that Chloe is not Nick.” Holly knew that she jumbled up Gail’s metaphor, but it served its purpose. Holly wasn’t really one to beat around the bush when they were having an actual conversation anyway.

Gail knew that she was pushing it a little with the Chloe and Dov analogy, but she didn’t think Holly was going to call her out on it. Gail swallowed. “I know you’re not Nick. I just-”

“You don’t have to explain,” Holly interrupted quietly. She kissed the back of Gail’s hand, “You feel what you feel and you’ll know that we’re in sync when you know. And I love you no matter what, even if you’re never ready.”

“So are you…offering?” Gail asked hesitantly as they cruised down the dark highway.

Holly grinned, seeing Gail’s face in the green glow of her dashboard. Gail’s face remained emotionless as she watched the road. “Maybe if you wanted. But I guess it doesn’t matter right now.”

“It does,” Gail quickly added, not wanting Holly to feel like she got shot down or something. “It means a lot to me.”

Holly wasn’t sure that there was anything else she could say that wasn’t super cheesy so she picked up Gail’s phone and checked the directions. After a few minutes she directed Gail to a different road and eventually they ended up seeing Chris’s truck lights flashing on the side of the road.

“Hey fellas,” Gail rolled down her window as Chris and Dov got out of the truck and ran to Holly’s car, “Lookin’ for a good time?”

Both men dove into the car and pointed all the heater vents they could reach toward themselves. “Thank you so much,” Chris unzipped his jacket and started rubbing his chest.

“Sorry it’s so late,” Dov added.

“You owe us,” Gail told them both as she merged onto the highway from the side of the road.

“Anything,” Dov stated, putting his hands in front of one of the vents, “Literally anything.”

Gail glanced over at Holly, “Hmm, better make them do something good huh?”

“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Holly agreed, matter-of-factly.

Dov immediately regretted that he said anything, but Gail didn’t tell him to do anything all the way home. When they got to the apartment, Holly and Gail went back to bed, leaving the boys to warm themselves up.

Holly pulled her pillow down against her head and pulled the covers up around herself. She felt the bed dip behind her and then Gail slipped her arm around Holly’s waist. She kissed Holly’s shoulder and pulled Holly firmly against herself. Gail let out a deep breath, “I love you.”

“I love you too,” Holly turned her head to the side and kissed Gail’s nose.

Gail smiled and squeezed Holly, happy to hold Holly in her arms while they slept. 


	22. Chapter 22

In the morning, when everyone was up, Holly called the moving company and told them where to go. She didn’t need to go supervise so she and Gail drank tea on the couch while they watched the news.

“Ugh, the news is terrible,” Gail groaned.

“That’s your mom,” Holly pointed to the tv.

Gail groaned louder, “I know.”

“No one I know is ever on TV,” Holly took a sip of her tea, “Unless they’ve recently died.”

Gail stood up and went to the kitchen, “Well, it gets old fast.”

Holly read the crawler at the bottom of the screen and watched the new story change to something else, “No dreams of being a white shirt?”

Gail had thought about this a lot. Especially after she was passed over for the detective’s promotion. She actually asked to be passed over and purposely made her application terrible and didn’t try hard on the test. She didn’t want to be a detective. Gail got some more tea and sat down on the couch. “I don’t think so.” She looked over at Holly, watching Holly take in her every word. Gail smiled, knowing that she had Holly’s full attention. “I love my job. I love being out there on the street helping people. I feel like I’m actually doing something with my life that means something. At first it was just about doing what my parents wanted. My mom wants some kind of police dynasty, but I love what I’m doing now. Maybe later on I’ll want a desk job, but…being on patrols – it’s what I love.”

Holly smiled, “That’s great. Do what you love. I totally support that.”

Gail smiled back and kissed Holly, “Thanks.” She wasn’t sure that she’d had anyone that fully supported her no matter what. It was just another something to add to the list of reasons she loved Holly.

“What about you?” Gail asked, poking Holly’s shoulder, “Dreams of being Chief.”

Holly chuckled, “Oh no. Absolutely not. I’m super awkward in court. I couldn’t get elected for anything.”

“I don’t know about that,” Gail put her feet up on the coffee table, “My mom could probably get you elected to anything.”

“Regardless,” Holly scooted closer to Gail and put her head on Gail’s shoulder, “I love my job.”

Holly’s phone rang before Gail could tell Holly that she was glad Holly loved her creepy job. “Hey Marlo,” Holly answered happily. She paused to listen and added, “We’re actually just going to barbeque on the roof tonight. I’m having movers move all of my stuff…oh yeah totally…of course…that sounds amazing…okay see you then.” Holly hung up and stretched, “Marlo is bringing a pineapple upside down cake and beer.”

“Awesome,” Gail nodded, still not super happy with Marlo. But she knew that Holly didn’t blame Marlo for anything so she was going to grin and bear it.

Holly checked the time and stood up, “I should go get dressed. The movers said that they’ll be over in about an hour.”

“Let’s grab some coffee on the way,” Gail stated and stood up.

After their coffee run, Holly led Gail up to her new apartment. They didn’t run into Andy and that made Gail hopeful that she wouldn’t have to see Andy and Nick all the time now that Holly was moving into the same building.

Once they were inside, Holly tossed her keys onto the island in the kitchen and looked at Gail, “Home sweet home.”

“Is it everything you dreamed of?” Gail asked.

Holly chuckled, “I will miss my built in bookshelf, but I guess I can just go buy some later.” She leaned back on the island and watched Gail look around.

Gail turned around and shuffled back to Holly. She moved close to her, pressing her body against Holly’s, pinning her against the island. Holly grinned and rested her arms on Gail’s shoulders, threading her fingers together behind Gail’s neck.

“I think we should skip the barbeque,” Gail dipped her head down and kissed the side of Holly’s neck. “We should probably test out your mattress and make sure the movers didn’t break it.”

Holly hummed, “It would be the responsible thing to do.” Her eyes fluttered closed when Gail playfully nipped at her neck.

“How are you stitches?” Gail asked, moving her lips to the other side of Holly’s neck.

“They’re fine,” Holly answered, knowing what Gail was actually getting at. They couldn’t have sex before because of Holly’s stitches, yet they had both been craving it. Now Holly was healed enough to comfortably have her way with Gail. “Good as new.”

“Hey I brought – Oh my god!” Andy walked right into the apartment and walked right back out.

Holly started laughing and Gail groaned, knowing their moment was over. She turned around, “Damn it, McNally. Don’t you knock?”

Andy stuck her head in the door, “Sorry. I thought the movers would be here already.”

“C’min Andy,” Holly waved her inside as Gail turned around to leaned against the island next to her.

“Sorry,” Andy said sincerely and presented a pink box and a tray of coffee. “I just came by to see if you need any help.”

“Well, we don’t need any help yet,” Holly smiled, “But you’re welcome to say and enjoy the peace before the storm.” She took the coffee and donuts from Andy and put them on the counter. As she set them down her phone rang. She looked at the screen and added, “Looks like I spoke too soon.” She answered the phone and told the movers to use the service elevator. When she hung up she flipped open the top of the donut box, “They’re on their way up.” Holly picked up a donut and took a bite before offering it to Gail.

Gail took it, “Oh what I’ve always wanted, a used donut.”

Holly just grinned and walked to the door, opening it fully.

It wasn’t long before there were movers bringing furniture up and Holly was directing the traffic. Gail and Andy mostly sat on the kitchen island and drank their coffee.

“So,” Andy picked up a donut, “Are you going to be moving in here anytime soon?”

Gail shrugged, nonchalantly even though she had been thinking about it for a while. She sipped her coffee, “It’s kinda soon don’t you think?”

Andy tucked some hair behind her ear, “Well she’s kinda been living with you. How’s that going?”

“Great,” was the first word that came to Gail’s mind. “I mean, it’s not like I thought living with someone I’m dating would be like. It’s easy.”

Andy took a bite of her donut and chewed thoughtfully before adding, “When you know, you know right?”

Gail agreed, but only because she didn’t have much else to say and she didn’t want to talk to Andy about moving in with Holly. She was still trying to be mean to Andy.

It only took about an hour for the movers to get everything into Holly’s new apartment and arrange it how she wanted it. Andy had taken to sitting on the kitchen island while Gail leaned back on it. Holly approached them after she closed the door after the movers.

“What do we think?” Holly asked gesturing to the apartment in general.

Andy knew that Holly wasn’t really asking her so she kept her mouth shut.

Gail nodded as she looked around, “Your stuff looks good here.”

“Too many windows?” Holly looked around with her arms crossed, “Too much light?”

“Oh my god, you’re soulmates,” Andy chuckled and hopped down. “I’m going to go get ready for the barbeque. I have to start marinating the chicken.” She hugged Holly, “I love your place. And if you need anything I’m just two floors down.”

“Thanks Andy,” Holly smiled, “Same here. If you need anything just come up.”

Gail wanted to intervene and tell her that she should probably call first, but she didn’t want to ruin Holly’s friendly moment. Andy waved to Gail as she walked out.

Gail looked over at Holly and smiled when she caught her looking. “So, what do you want to do now?”

Holly walked over to Gail and put her hands on Gail’s hips. She gently caressed her sides and then leaned into Gail. She wasn’t sad or tired. She just wanted to touch Gail. “Thank you for coming.”

“I didn’t really do anything,” Gail smiled and turned her head so that she could subtly smell Holly’s hair.

Holly leaned back to look at Gail’s face, “You’ll come visit all the time right?”

Gail nodded, “So much that you’re going to get sick of me.” She smiled and kissed Holly. She pulled back and then went in for another kiss. This time she slipped her lips slipped against Holly’s. She put her hand on Holly’s cheeks, pulling her in harder.

“Are you going to stay tonight?” Holly asked softly. She bit her lip and rested her forehead on Gail’s. She was actually starting to seriously worry about how she was going to handle sleeping alone again.

Gail had the same fears that Holly did, but she didn’t want to overstep and assume anything. “Do you want me to?”

“Please,” Holly’s eyes flickered away from Gail’s. She didn’t know how it came to this. She felt foolish for not being able to sleep without Gail after a lifetime of depending on solely on herself.

Gail just pulled Holly against her. She tucked Holly’s head under her chin. “Let’s go hook up your TV.”

Holly nodded and ran a hand through her hair. She took a step back from Gail and adjusted her glasses. Holly decided that since the barbeque was going to be on the roof the apartment building, she would have a beer while she watched Gail hook up her TV, game console, DVD player, and cable.

“I hope you’re enjoying the view,” Gail called as she stuck her upper body behind the TV, leaving her lower half and backside on display for Holly.

Holly put her feet up on the couch and crossed her ankles, “I’m loving the view.” She took a drink of her beer and smiled.

Gail smiled and shook her head. After she connected all the wired and made sure the cable was working, she stood in front of Holly, “It occurs to me that the scientist in the room could have handled the electronics.”

Holly finished off her beer. “Could have,” Holly nodded and then grinned up at Gail, “But didn’t.” She set her beer down on the coffee table and checked her phone. “We have to go.” Holly stood up.

Gail grabbed her arm and spun her around. She got really close to Holly’s ear and whispered seductively, “When we get back from the barbeque, we’re going to christen your new place, so, uh, don’t drink too much.”

Holly’s eyes got wide. Gail just grinned and stepped around her, making her way to the door. Gail opened the door, “You coming?”

Holly took a deep breath and muttered to herself, “Maybe a little bit.” She ducked her head and wondered how she was going to make it through an entire social gathering with the words that Gail just put in her head.


	23. Chapter 23

Although Gail was the one to initially tease Holly, she was having the hardest time at the barbeque. It seemed that Holly was behaving normally, laughing and joking with Gail’s friends while Gail sat on the stairs and chewed on a straw.

“You know that chewing on a straw is a sign of sexual frustration right?” a voice came from behind Gail.

Gail turned around ready to tell off whoever it was that just came through the door to the roof, when she saw Dov standing next to Chloe. Gail immediately stood, “Chloe. You’re here.”

Chloe smiled and instinctively put her hand on her neck. “Well when Dov told me that you guys were going to cook on the roof in the freezing cold, I couldn’t resist.”

Gail didn’t seem to know what to do so Chloe hugged her. Gail was gentle with Chloe and smiled. She was actually relieved that Chloe was okay.

It didn’t take long for the rest of the officers to spot Chloe so they made their way over to say hi. Gail noticed that Holly wasn’t among the group so she looked around the roof. Nick was standing at the grill and Celery was holding a beer next to him. Steve was sneaking some chips on the food table.

She spotted Holly on the other side of the roof sitting on the edge with Leo. Holly was pointing up at the sky. Leo’s eyes followed her arm and he nodded. Then he said something and Holly nodded, moving her arm in a sweeping motion before lowering it. Leo added something, pointing on his own. Holly smiled and nodded.

Gail felt something completely different than the maddening sexual frustration she had been experiencing all night. Her heart contracted and grew warm. A smile crept onto her face. Gail had subconsciously thought about it and she was pretty sure she consciously thought about it a few times, but it seemed like such a natural thought that it didn’t stand out amongst her other ones. Yes, Gail Peck was in love with Holly Stewart.

Gail continued to stare at Holly until Steve caught her and made fun of her for it. She punched him in the stomach and went to find a drink. After she grabbed  a beer, Gail moved to the outdoor heater and stood under it. Chris made his way over. “You guys didn’t need any help today?”

“No,” Gail shook her head, “Holly hired movers. She didn’t want anyone to have to go back into that building again.”

“That was really nice of her,” Chris took a sip of his beer. He looked across the roof at Traci who had walked up to Holly and Leo just to check in. Leo grinned and pointed out some things in the sky.

“She’s amazing,” Gail’s mouth twitched and she looked down at the ground.

“What’s wrong?” Chris asked, knowing that that meant.

Gail bounced on her toes and looked over at Holly. “She’s perfect.”

Chris chuckled, “I noticed. If she was into guys I would have asked her out a long time ago. What’s the problem?”

“I’m very not perfect,” Gail swallowed and looked up at Chris. She was being completely serious. Yeah she was in love with Holly, but sometimes she didn’t feel that Holly had a whole lot of reasons to be in love with her. Maybe it was her own insecurities, the ones that make her emotional walls so high and so sharp, or maybe she still blamed herself a little for what happened to Holly. She still felt like she let Holly down.

“Holly loves you,” Chris sputtered out, bewildered at how Gail could think that there was any kind of weak link in the relationship. “When she talks about you…she can’t stop smiling, you know. You don’t have to be perfect. You just have to make her happy, which you do.”

Gail kicked at the roof with the toe of her boot. She didn’t say anything. Then she looked up at Holly to find that Holly was looking back. Holly smiled at her. Gail couldn’t stop herself from smiling back. Holly stood up and excused herself from Leo who was imparting the knowledge that Holly just gave him to his mother. She walked up to Gail and stood in front of her, “What’s a girl got to do to get a drink around here?”

Gail looked around and opened the nearest cooler. She pulled out a wine cooler and offered it to Holly. Holly quirked an eyebrow, but took it, “I haven’t had one of those since high school.”

Gail smirked and switched Holly’s drink with her own, “There’s no pleasing you is there?”

Holly let out a sly smile and Gail almost choked on the fruity drink that she was sipping. Holly held up her drink in a toast, “We’ll see.” She kissed Gail’s cheek and walked toward Andy who was calling her over.

Gail groaned and sat down on the nearest table, “When is this stupid barbeque going to be over?”

When the food was ready, everyone sat at the different tables and ate. By some stroke of luck, Gail managed to sit down next to Holly before Andy could. It wasn’t really so much a stroke of luck. It was an _accidental_ bump that sent Andy’s drink all over the ground.

Marlo was next to Holly, having arrive a few minutes before the food was done. Sam came with her and was talking to Oliver at the other end of the table. Frank and Noelle showed up as well, bringing more food.

Oliver stood up when everyone sat down and cleared his throat, “Can I have everyone’s attention? It’ll just take a second.” Once everyone was quiet and looking at Oliver, he added, “I just have to say that I am so, so thankful that everyone made it through the past few weeks okay. It wasn’t luck. It was bravery and heart. Part of it was training and part of it was instinct. You are all unlike any group of rookies that I’ve ever seen. You’re the best,” He swallowed, trying to not get choked up. There was a clap of general congratulations for each of the rookies, “And a doctor like no other.” Some of the rookies let out a whoop for Holly, who smiled shyly. Gail grinned, extremely proud of Holly. Oliver smiled at her and she gave him a thankful nod, “Alright, alright, I’ll stop being a sentimental old guy. Thanks for coming and thank you to Andy and Holly for hosting this party.”

Oliver sat down and everyone started digging in. Dov and Nick moved the outdoor heaters closer to the tables because the night cold was starting to slip around the heaters.

Gail found herself starting to get a little chilly as she ate and tried not to let it show. She wanted to just get through dinner so that she could take Holly back downstairs and do unspeakable things to her.

Of course a few minutes later, a jacket rested on her shoulders. Gail looked around and saw that Holly was talking to Celery who was sitting across the table. Only now, Holly wasn’t wearing her jacket anymore.

Gail slid her arm through the arm holes of the jacket and put her arm around Holly. Holly turned to Gail and smiled at her. Gail gave Holly a peck on the lips and rubbed her shoulder, “Are you sure you’re not too cold?”

Holly shook her head, “I’m fine. I work in a giant refrigerator. This is nothing.”

Gail rolled her eyes and kept her arm around Holly.

After they ate, Gail and Holly got separated again. Gail was talking to Frank and Noelle about some of the other white shirts that she grew up with. She wasn’t sure where Holly went. She kept trying to subtly look around the roof for Holly, but it seemed that she had disappeared.

Chloe came up to the group and hugged Frank. He smiled and put his arm around her. He was perhaps one of the happiest people around when Chloe woke up. He added something to Gail who nodded absently.

Chloe noticed and told her, “Holly went to her apartment. She said that she was getting a headache or something. She went to lie down.”

Gail blinked. That was all it took. She excused herself, threw her beer in the nearest trash can, and made her way downstairs. She can’t believe that Holly wouldn’t tell her that she wasn’t feeling well. Gail tried to remember if any of Holly’s injuries could cause a headache. Some kind of infection or something? Gail opened the door to Holly’s apartment without thinking about it and automatically locked it behind herself. Gail took off Holly’s jacket and wondered if Holly got sick because she had given her the jacket.

“Holly?” Gail called softly.

“In the bedroom,” Holly called back.

Gail walked quickly down the hallway and stopped dead in the doorway of the bedroom like she had walked into a brick wall. Holly was laying on the bed in boy shorts and a tank top. They were both pale colors that made Holly’s skin seems darker and more saccharine in the light of the candles on the nightstand. Gail immediately wondered what it would taste like under her lips.

Holly’s hair was hanging across her back, grazing the bed.

“Chloe said you…had a head – a headache,” Gail sputtered out, not able to get a sentence out normally. Holly’s legs seemed to go on forever and shimmer in the candlelight.

Holly smirked. It was hard to try to keep everything sexy when Gail was tripping over her words. She was so cute. Holly stood up from the bed and walked over to Gail. She slipped her arms around Gail’s neck and kissed her softly. It was teasing and baiting at the same time when she ran her teeth over Gail’s bottom lip. Then she leaned forward and whispered into Gail’s ear, “I lied.”

Holly pulled back just enough to look at Gail’s face. She needed to know that Gail wanted this just as much as she did. They had gotten really far into the relationship without having sex and something about doing it then felt like it was cementing their relationship in stone.

Gail moved forward and kissed Holly, answering Holly’s question. Her hands came to rest low on Holly’s hips. Her thumbs moved up, pushing the thin tank top higher so that Gail could touch Holly’s skin. She loved Holly’s skin. She loved the feel of it against her skin. She loved the taste. She loved what Holly deemed imperfections, because to Gail they weren’t imperfections. They were just like brushstrokes all coming together to make Holly. She loved Holly.

Holly hummed against Gail’s lips and moved her hands from Holly’s neck to her jacket to push it off of Gail’s shoulders. Gail was reluctant to break contact with Holly’s skin, but finally did. Holly pushed off her jacket and then pulled the shirt over Gail’s head because Gail even knew she had taken ahold of it.

Gail licked her lips as she gently removed Holly’s glasses. She closed them and put them on the dresser behind her. Holly blinked slowly, letting her eyes adjust. She gently kissed Gail, barely letting their lips touch as she ran her hands up and down Gail’s sides one time.

Her eyes dipped down to Gail’s bra or more appropriately what was in the bra. Then her eyes dropped to the belt that was still holding Gail’s jeans up. Holly’s hands fell to the belt. She couldn’t quite get it undone before Gail nailed her with a kiss. It threw off Holly’s balance, but Gail caught her before she could fall. Gail’s hands had slipped under Holly’s shirt, running across her back and deepening the kiss.

Gail used the position to advantage and lowered Holly onto the bed. Once Holly was on her back, Gail straddled her waist and looked over her prize. Holly’s hair was splayed out across the bed and her chest heaved with slow deep breaths. Holly’s hands were still on Gail’s belt, having been stunned into stillness.

Gail smiled and moved her lips back down to Holly’s. Instead of kissing her urgently, Gail kissed Holly softly. Her kiss was sweet because she was sexually attracted to Holly and aroused beyond belief, but at the same time, she was so deeply in love with Holly and just the sight of Holly made her all warm.

Holly’s fingers started moving again, unbuckling Gail’s belt and then her jeans. She pushed them down Gail’s lips. Both women smiled as Holly struggled to get them down Gail’s legs. Finally Gail stood up off of the bed to get them off. Holly used the opportunity to crawl up the bed so that her legs were no longer hanging off.

Gail crawled onto the bed and laid down on her side next to Holly. She tucked some hair behind Holly’s ear and kissed her. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” Holly licked her lips. She ran her hand up and down Gail’s side, slowly and lovingly.

They both moved toward the middle and their lips meshed together. Their tongues slid against each other in a natural sync. Gail was so into the kiss that she was surprised when her bra suddenly became looser. Holly had unhooked her bra.

Gail was about to say something when Holly rolled her onto her back and straddled her hips. Holly wrapped her fingers around the straps of Gail’s bra and slowly started to pull it down her arms, lightly running her fingers in a trail down Gail’s skin. Holly pushed Gail’s arm above her head as she move the bra toward Gail’s hands. Her torso moved closer to Gail’s and her lips met Gail’s when her fingers slipped between Gail’s against the headboard.

Gail hadn’t felt like that in a long time. She felt like her heart was being so fast that it was in dangers of just stopping altogether. She arched her back to try to get Holly closer.

Holly released Gail’s hands and tossed the bra aside. She slide her fingers all the way back down Gail’s arms and around her shoulders. Holly paused for a beat before moving her hands from Gail’s shoulders to her breasts. Holly felt erect nipples against her palms and felt herself losing her breath.

She couldn’t help herself anymore. Her mouth joined her hands in the worship of Gail’s chest. Gail buried her hands in Holly’s hair as Holly brought her as close to orgasm as she’d ever been without ever taking her panties off.

Gail moved her hands from Holly’s hair to the back of her shirt. She gathered the material in her hand and pulled it up. Holly ducked her head so that Gail could pull the shirt all the way off. Holly sat up a little to adjust her hair and Gail took in the topless beauty before her. Her hands gravitated toward Holly’s breasts as Holly moved in for a kiss.

Gail smiled when her hands on Holly elicited a small gasp from the doctor. Gail finally felt like her brain could function enough to move forward. She rolled Holly onto her back and before she could sit up all the way, she felt Holly’s fingers wrap around the top of her panties. She tensed when Holly’s fingers brushed against the sensitive skin under the panties, only mere centimeters from the place where Gail was sure Holly would push her to new heights.

However, Gail had plans before that. She slowly moved her hands across Holly’s torso, following her hands with a series of kisses. She moved slowly down Holly’s abdomen  and when she felt the rough scar marring Holly’s smooth skin, she stopped. She took her time with that area. She kissed it slowly as if her kisses could heal. She felt Holly’s entire body tense, but this was important to Gail. She knew that Holly was self-conscious about her scars, but she needed Holly to know that she loved her. She loved all of her, scars and all. Perhaps, especially her scars.

“Gail,” Holly breathed out.

Gail looked up at Holly and found her biting her bottom lip. Her eyes seemed to be scared. Gail frowned and sat up, “What’s wrong?”

Holly closed her eyes and shook her head, “It’s nothing.”

Gail moved back up Holly’s body and took Holly’s face in her hands. She gently stroked Holly’s cheeks and then kissed her chastely.

Holly pushed Gail’s hair out of her face and took a breath to clear her brain. “I just…I feel like you love me.”

“I do,” Gail let out a small smile, loving that it was getting across.

“It’s dumb, but I…I just…” Holly blinked away tears, “I’m totally ruining this aren’t I?”

“No you’re not,” Gail was quick to reassure her. She kissed Holly again. “I do love you.”

Holly looked away for a beat, ashamed for letting her emotions get the better of her. “This is just my first time since…my scars.”

Gail caught Holly’s eyes when they came back to her. “I know. And you’re still beautiful.” Gail waited to see Holly’s reaction. She knew it probably wouldn’t be that easy to ease Holly’s fears, so she kept talking, “You’re beautiful in a way that shows that you’re brave. You’re strong Holly and I love everything about you. _Everything._ ”

Holly touched Gail’s face and pulled her down for a kiss. Gail smiled against Holly’s lips, knowing that she got her point across. She gave Holly a peck before moving back down Holly’s torso. She kissed along the scar and down to the top of Holly’s panties.

Gail’s eyes moved up to Holly’s. She still wanted to make sure that Holly was okay. Holly looked breathless and licked her lips. Gail smirked. She had no idea how anyone couldn’t find Holly the sexiest creature on the planet.

Gail kissed the material of Holly’s panties just above the top. Then she moved down a little. Then she went down a little more and found the material damp. Then a little more than damp. Gail was pleasantly pleased.

Holly squeezed her eyes closed when the pressure of Gail’s mouth pressed into the most sensitive area of her body. She felt Gail grip the top of her panties and pull down. The cloth slowly moved down with Gail’s tuck. Holly lifted her ass so that the panties could slide all the way off.

She felt herself grow more aroused at being completely exposed to Gail. Gail for her part was both aroused and nervous. She’d never been with a woman before. Of course, she knew to never go into any situation unprepared so she had read things and watched videos that she would never admit to. Not because she didn’t watch porn, but because she wouldn’t admit to watching it to take notes.

But her studying apparently paid off. Holly readily showed Gail a few things that Gail couldn’t learn from a video. When Holly finally rolled onto her back with a smile on her face, Gail was still chasing the breath she lost half an hour ago. Holly wiped her lips and moved up the bed to rest her head on a pillow next to Gail.

“That was…” Gail trailed off because she couldn’t really think of an adjective. Exhausting was a good one. Heavenly was a better one. She just couldn’t think of the world to describe what just happened and all the things she felt.

Holly looked over at Gail and kissed her again before wrapping her arms around Gail. “So worth the wait.”


	24. Chapter 24

“Oh god I’m so sore,” Gail moaned into her pillow when the alarm went off in the morning.

Holly didn’t make any noise, but she was in much the same shape that Gail was in. She slowly rolled onto her back and tried to decide if getting in the shower first was worth all the pain that she would go through getting out of bed right then. She used parts of her body the night before that she hadn’t used in a while.

Gail forced herself to shut off the alarm, but let her arm hang limply off of the bed because pulling it back up seemed like it would hurt more than help. Her fingers started to get cold so she flopped her arm over herself and across Holly.

Holly snuggled into Gail’s chest under her arm and didn’t force her eyes open. “Sleep good?” she murmured.

“Like a rock,” Gail tightened her arm around Holly and kissed the mess of hair on top of her head. “You wore me out.”

“That was the plan,” Holly chuckled and adjusted her head closer to Gail.

Gail smiled and relaxed completely. “Why did we set the alarm again?”

Holly thought back and tried to remember. Then it popped into her head. “I got a text last night from my boss at like one in the morning. He asked me to go in today because of a homicide last night and you were supposed to set the alarm for ten.”

“What time is it?” Gail rolled onto her back and looked at the clock. It was 8:10.

Holly chuckled and opened her eyes. She stretched her back and took stock of all the places on her body she was sore. “Are you going back to sleep or would you like to accompany me to breakfast?”

“We went to sleep like five hours ago. How can you function?” Gail sat up, holding the sheet up over her chest.

Holly shrugged and stood up, not even trying to cover herself up. She walked straight to the bathroom and only partially closed the door before turning the shower on.

Gail tucked the blanket around herself and slumped against the headboard. She thought about going back to sleep. She didn’t have to be at work until an hour after Holly. But then she thought about the beautiful woman in the shower and she got out of bed to join her.

Holly was facing away from Gail when she stepped into the shower. Holly smiled, but didn’t turn around. She just smiled when Gail wrapped herself around Holly’s torso. Gail kissed Holly’s wet shoulder and then the side of Holly’s neck. “It’s too cold without you.”

Holly smiled and put her hand on the back of Gail’s neck. She turned her head and kissed Gail. “It’s warm in here.”

Their first experience with shower sex was less graceful and more playful than their first time in a bed. By the time they were done, the hot water had run out. They both ran to the bed and tangled up in each other, trying to talk each other into getting something to eat.

“I’m actually really impressed with how quickly you got my bra off last night,” Gail offered after Holly finally got up to make tea, but didn’t return with anything else to eat. They had to share one cup of tea because Holly could only find one mug.

Holly took a sip from the mug and handed it back to Gail, “Thanks. It’s one of the special skills I put on my résumé.”

Gail grinned as she took a sip of tea. “So today you’re going back to work work or is it just kind of a reintegration thing?”

“I’m going back to work,” Holly nodded. “One of the other pathologists quit and moved to Manitoba so they need me back as soon as possible.” Holly looked over at Gail who was moving back into a laying position, “When do you go back to patrol?”

Gail shrugged, “I don’t know. Frank will probably ask me if I’m ready on Monday.”

“Are you?” Holly asked, taking the tea from Gail so she wouldn’t spill it.

Gail nodded, “I think so.” She pulled the blankets up to her neck, “At least when I get out on patrol the coffee is better.”

Holly looked at the clock and knew she needed to get moving. She ran a hand through her damp hair and asked, “Walk me to work?”

“I just got under the covers,” Gail whined and pulled the blankets up over her head.

Holly smiled, “Fair enough.” She kissed the top part of Gail’s head that was sticking out and got out of the bed, “You can stay for as long as you like.”

“I’m staying forever to continue my affair with your bed,” Gail pulled a pillow over her face, but knew that she was going to walk Holly to work anyway.

“I was going to give my spare key to Andy, but I guess you can have it,” Holly added off handedly as she searched her partially unpacked closet for something to wear.

Gail sat up, “You can’t give it to Andy. She’ll show up here at six in the morning and want you to run with her or something.”

Holly picked out a shirt and put it on over her tank top, “Why should you get it? You’ll just come over and play video games and sleep in my bed.”

“I’ll keep your bed warm for you,” Gail appeared at the doorway of the closet and hugged Holly around the waist.

Holly quirked an eyebrow and shrugged like she didn’t care as she buttoned up her shirt, “Fine. Whatever.” Then she put her arms around Gail’s neck and got earnest, “You can come over anytime and stay for as long as you want.”

Gail held Holly’s tight against her body and rested her chin on Holly’s shoulder, “Thanks Holly.”

As they got dressed, Gail remembered that she had be back at work an hour after she dropped off Holly so there was really no point in walking Holly to work and then going home only to turn around and drive right back. She left her dirty clothes in Holly’s hamper and shrugged her coat on. She put the apartment key Holly gave her on her key ring and walked Holly outside. They took the most direct route to the morgue from the apartment which ran past 15Division.

“Hey guys,” Chris stopped them on the sidewalk in front of the building.

“Hey Chris,” Holly forced a smile, but side-eyed the building down the walkway from them. She felt uneasy being around it. The front of the building was back to its original state, but Holly knew exactly where a car plowed through the front doors.

“How are you feeling?” Chris asked Holly, capturing her attention,  “Chloe told me that you had a headache and went to bed early.”

Holly looked over at Gail who was grinning. Holly tried not to laugh when she told Chris that she felt fine. She had to say something so Gail didn’t spill the beans about what really happened the night before.

“Walking to work together?” Chris asked and nudged Gail with a friendly smile.

Gail nodded, “It’s on the way.” She noticed Holly occasionally glancing at the 15 Division building and subtly, maybe subconsciously, using Chris’s body to block her view of the building. She saw Holly’s jaw clench and watched Holly swallow. Holly looked away from the building, all joy drained from her face. Gail looked to Chris, “I’ll meet you at parade. Holly has to get to work.” Gail didn’t wait for Chris to answer. She took Holly’s arm and pulled her away from the building.

“Are you going to be okay going back to work?” Gail asked quietly when Chris was making his way into the station.

Holly swallowed and adjusted her glasses, “Yeah, I mean I think so. It’s not like…what happened in there.” Holly looked back at the building and wished that she hadn’t. She could see the building coming at her through the windshield of the stolen car. Her body braced itself for impact, but her mind froze. She just stared straight ahead, watching the building come at her.

Gail’s mouth twitched while she tried to figure out what to do, “Let’s go to your office.”

Holly broke out of her trance. Her mouth felt dry and her chest felt heavy. She nodded and started walking toward her office. Her put her hands in her pockets and looked at the sidewalk under her. She didn’t want to feel like that. She was tired of feeling like that. She hated that she couldn’t control her emotions. She felt so defeated standing in front of the 15 Division.

She felt Gail put her hand in the pocket of her jacket. Gail’s hand wrapped around her own and they held hands in the pocket of her jacket. Holly smiled and looked up at Gail. Gail offered her a reassuring smile. Somehow that made everything seem farther away. All the bad emotions kept their distance while Gail was smiling at her.

When they got to Holly’s office, Holly felt an eerie sense of calm. She knew that neither of the Ford brothers were in her morgue. The old security guard had decided to retire after the incident and a rugged looking man sat in the booth. He asked to see Holly’s ID badge. After he examined it, he handed it back, “Thank you, Dr. Stewart.” Then he looked to Gail.

“Oh, she’s a police officer. She’s just walking me to my office,” Holly explained.

The man nodded. “Alright. But next time, I need to see a badge or something. They really want security tightened up around here.”

“Thank you,” Holly nodded. The phrase ‘too little too late’ came to mind. Holly started walking toward her office, but Gail stopped to talk to the security guard. She made sure that he knew about all the entrances and exits to the morgue. She made sure he had keys to every door and knew where all the stairs were.

Holly continued to walk down the hallway. She didn’t need to listen to Gail make sure that no one could get into the morgue and kidnap her again. She had heard that everywhere she had gone for the past week and she didn’t think she could take anymore of feeling helpless.

Holly was taking off her coat and putting on her lab coat when Gail walked in. Gail walked over to Holly’s desk and sat down, “All good?”

“All great,” Holly nodded. She picked up the files on her desk and knew that there were new bodies in the fridge. For the first time in a long time, things felt like they were back to normal.

Gail sat at the desk and kicked the chair from side to side. “You look hot in your lab coat.”

Holly chuckled, “Thanks. That’s usually what I go for in a room full of expired people.”

Gail stood up and moved to the front of Holly’s desk. She leaned back on it. “Can I be forward with you?”

“Is there any other direction that you go?” Holly asked, crossing her arms with the folder still in her hand.

Gail smiled and her eyes momentarily dropped to the ground, “Touché.” She looked up at Holly. “Can I move in with you?”

Holly took a moment to take in the words before she asked back, “That depends.”

“On?” Gail asked immediately. She was starting to worry that she had done something to upset Holly. She thought back trying to figure out what it was. Which snide remark or unapproving facial expression had given Holly pause.

“If you’re moving in with me to protect me or because you want to wake up next to me every morning,” Holly countered evenly.

“What does that mean?” Gail frowned, tilting her head and leaning back slightly. “You’re tired of me trying to _protect_ you?”

“I just don’t feel like I can’t move on from what happened when you’re always making sure nothing can happen to me,” Holly sighed, hoping that Gail didn’t take what she was taking the wrong way. “I appreciate it, but things are going to happen. Accidents happen. Good things happen.”

Gail opened her mouth to reply. Then she closed her mouth. She didn’t know how to process what Holly just said. She stood up and quickly walked to the door. Then she stopped. She turned around. She rubbed her eyes and moved back to the desk. Her voice was low and quiet. She was trying to be angry because angry was better than the hurt she was feeling, “I just don’t want to lose you.”

Holly put down the files. “I get that, but you have to let me live my life so that you can live it beside me. What happened to me wasn’t your fault. And there is no way you could have prevented it without putting your life in danger.” Holly licked her lips, taking a moment to gather her words, “I know what you love me. I love you too. I would love nothing more than for you to move in with me, but I want it to happen for the right reasons.”

Gail looked at Holly whose gaze never wavered or faltered. Holly held her eyes, silently begging Gail to understand. Gail looked down and then back up at Holly. She sat at the edge of the desk and faced Holly. She reached out and took Holly’s hands. “I’m sorry.” She pushed her palms up against Holly’s and threaded their fingers together. “I love waking up next to you. I can’t help being protective though. It’s my job.”

“Good,” Holly smiled, moving closer to Gail. She leaned on Gail’s knees and kissed her. “You protect people at your job and I will wake up next to you every morning.” Holly brushed her nose against Gail’s with a smile. She waited for Gail to smile before kissing her.

Gail looked up at Holly after their kiss, “I wish you would have told me that you were getting annoyed with me being overprotective.”

“Would it have stopped you?” Holly asked reached behind Gail to extract some latex gloves from the box on her desk.

Gail stole a kiss because Holly’s face was close to hers, “No, but I would have been more discrete.”

Holly rolled her eyes, but she wasn’t really annoyed. She stood up straight, “You work on being more discrete and I’ll keep trying to move on.”

Gail stood up and nodded. She wrapped her arms around Holly in a hug. “When do you get off?”

Holly smiled slyly, “About ten minutes after you get home from work.”

Gail’s eyes widened and she couldn’t believe that Holly said that. She blushed slightly before nodded. She finally smiled back, “It’s a date.”

“Be safe,” Holly touched Gail’s cheek before kissing her. She meant it. She’d never dated a cop before and didn’t realize all the anxiety that went with that until Gail went back to work for the first time after the incident.

Gail took her arms back and put her hands in her pockets, “You too. There’s a lot of sharp stuff in here.”

“I’ll do my best,” Holly laughed as Gail walked out.

Gail used the mirror in the locker room to put her hair up after she had changed into her uniform. She couldn’t stop the smile that crept up her lips when she remembered where she would be going home after shift.

“Someone had a good night last night,” Traci commented from her seat on the bench in front of the lockers. She was fixing her shoe lace, glancing up at Gail who looked as much like a love-struck puppy as anyone had ever seen her. Andy snickered behind her.

The dopey grin fell from Gail’s face and she snarked back, “Jealous?”

Traci chuckled and nodded, “Yeah a little. I haven’t gotten any in -”

“Please don’t,” Gail held up her hand, “You’re dating my brother.”

Traci and Andy laughed. Traci put her boot down on the ground and stood. “I won’t.”

“Ready to go Peck?” Andy asked, “You’re riding with me today.”

“I’m out on patrol?” Gail asked confused.

Andy nodded, “I just talked to Frank walking in.” Andy smiled, “It’ll be fun.” Then she and Traci walked out to grab some seats for parade.

Gail groaned. Fun was not really was she anticipated, spending all day with Andy. Then Gail remembered that after work she was moving in with Holly and smiled. Then she remembered that Andy lived in that same building and frowned. Finally, Gail grabbed her new bulletproof vest out of her locker and dropped it over her head.

She looked at herself in the mirror and took a deep breath. Back on patrol. She could do it. She was a Peck. And now she had someone that she had to get home to. Someone who told her to go protect at work so that she could come home and be herself. Gail smiled to herself and patted her vest. She was ready to go regardless of who her partner was. She closed her locked and walked out of the locker room with a genuinely confident smile.


	25. Chapter 25

The holidays were spent with the Pecks. Steve wasn’t around half of the time because Traci had family that she wanted to see, but Holly and Gail spend the entirety of Christmas Eve with at Pecks. However they both went missing from the party around eight having had enough social interaction. They retreated to Gail’s old room after raiding Steve’s closet for old movies. They watched a few James Bond movies, taking frequent breaks to make out like teenagers. Gail’s Mom came up the stairs and found them laying on the bed watching the movie. She asked Gail to make another appearance downstairs. Gail did as her mother asked, but only appeared from the stairs to the front door. She and Holly went to a 24 hour diner and spent two hours talking over milkshakes and poutine.

They slept until noon the next day. After a joint shower they exchanged presents. Then the sat on the couch and played one of the presents that Gail got Holly on the gaming console.

 “How did you get so good so fast?” Gail huffed and dropped her controller in her lap.

Holly picked up a cheese puff and popped it into her mouth. “I practice when you work the night shift.”

Gail cocked her head, “Because you’re worried about me?”

Holly smirked, “No. I just got sucked into the campaign. I beat it at three in the morning.”

Gail knew that Holly was lying, but she playfully pushed Holly anyway. Holly chuckled and sat back up straight. “You wanna go again? Or are you tired of losing?”

Never one to turn down a challenge, Gail picked up her controller and started a new match.

About halfway through the match, there was a knock on the door. Neither one stopped running around the field. “You should get that,” Gail added as she made a run after Holly.

Holly jumped out of Gail’s eye line and added, “You live here too. You get it.”

“You’re closer to the door,” Gail nudged Holly.

Holly paused the game and got up, taking her controller with her. She had learned from the last time she went to get pizza from the door and Gail used her controller to unpause the game and race to the finish line unopposed.

When the door opened, Holly saw a man standing there that she vaguely recognized. He just stood there wavering for a second before Holly smelled the booze on him. Holly was trying to think of a way to subtly call Gail for back up in case this was a bad encounter.

The man slurred before Holly could get Gail, “Werrs Andy?”

“Andy McNally?” Holly asked, setting her controller on the table next to the door. “She lives upstairs. Do you…want me to show you?”

The man grunted and started to stumble down the hallway. Holly called Gail before walking out the door behind the man. Gail ran after them and when she caught up she asked, “Mr. McNally?”

He turned to look at her and stumbled. Holly barely caught him. They managed to get him up the stairs and down the hall to Andy’s apartment. Gail knocked and leaned on the wall next to the door.

The door unlocked and came open. Andy looked like she had been sleeping. “What’s going on?”

“He got lost,” Gail stated and watched Tommy stumble into the apartment and walk down the hallway mumbling something about laying down.

Andy looked down and swallowed. It was evident that she was completely embarrassed, “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s no problem,” Holly waved her off understandingly. She lingered, “Are you going to be okay?”

“Yeah,” Andy nodded slowly, “I’m uh- I’m used to it.”

“We were about to order Chinese food from that place down the street,” Holly added, “Do you want us to get you two some as well? Save the delivery person a strip upstairs?”

Andy knew that Holly was doing and was thankful for it, “That would be great.”

“I just stole my brother’s copy of The Terminator on DVD,” Gail offered, “We could bring it over with the food.”

Andy smiled, only a little surprised that Gail wanted to help. “I’ll open a bottle of wine.”

Gail and Holly went back to their apartment and Holly ordered the food. She leaned back on the counter. Gail walked over to her and stood in front of her. Gail scrunched her mouth to one side and crossed her arms. She eyed Holly before taking a step closer. She unfolded her arms and let her hands slip onto Holly’s hips.

Holly tucked some of Gail’s hair behind her ear. “Should we have gotten dessert or something?”

Gail shook her head, “Andy’s a crazy fitness freak. It would be better to just run down to the bodega down the street for ice cream after the movie.”

“Okay,” Holly kissed Gail and slid her fingers around the back of Gail’s neck. “I’m sorry that I didn’t have more time to kick your ass.”

Gail chuckled and kissed Holly again. “It was just getting warmed up.”

When the food arrived, they took it upstairs to Andy’s apartment. She told them that her dad was asleep so they could watch the movie uninterrupted. They all settled on the couch and started eating. The movie played, but the women mostly talked. At first it was about movies, but it progressed after that.

Holly got up to get more wine and was in the kitchen leaving Gail and Andy alone on the couch. Andy swallowed and looked over at Gail, “Thanks for, uh, staying over. I know you’re not my biggest fan.”

Gail waved her off. “I’m over it.” She smirked and looked at the kitchen over the back of the couch. “Besides, I think I won this one.”

Andy followed Gail’s eyes and nodded, “Yeah I think you did too.”

After the movie, Andy assured Gail and Holly that she would be okay. She’d dealt with her drunk father many, many times before. But she was thankful that she had them with her for a while.

Holly and Gail left Andy’s and made their way down the stairs. Gail started to walk down the hallway to their apartment, but Holly kept walking down the stairs. It only took Gail a moment to realize that Holly wasn’t with her. She turned around, “Where are you going?”

“Oh I’m going to get ice cream,” Holly stopped walking down the stairs when only her head was visible to Gail. “You can come with me or stay here,” Holly shrugged.

Gail smiled and walked back to the stairs. Holly reached her hand back behind herself and Gail immediately took it, catching up with Holly on the last stair to the ground floor.

They walked through the darkened streets to the bodega down the street. They parted ways in the bodega. Holly hit the ice cream freezer while Gail went to the alcohol section.

Gail kept a subtle eye on Holly. She knew that she had gotten overbearing with her protectiveness, but this didn’t have much to do with Holly’s safety at all. Gail smiled at the way Holly bit her lip while she was thinking. She smiled at the way Holly always ran a hand through her hair when she was thinking and it always fell perfectly back into place. She loved the little quirks that made her Holly.

After Holly got the ice cream she wanted and the one she thought Gail would like, she turned around. She didn’t see Gail immediately and felt her heart speed up. She got a little anxious still when she couldn’t find Gail, but she was getting better at calming herself down. She took a few deep breaths and found her girlfriend’s icy blue eyes peering at her from the tiny wine section.

Holly met up with Gail and kissed her cheek before helping her pick out what bottle of wine they were going to share before bed. After they checked out, they walked hand in hand back toward their building. In front of the doors, Gail got a phone call it was Frank so she told Holly that she would be right up.

Holly made her way alone to the apartment. She put the ice cream up and opened up the bottle of wine. As she was glancing at the door, Holly had an awfully fantastic idea.

Gail looked down at her phone. It wasn’t anything bad that happened at work. Frank just wanted to let her know her schedule for next week because it was late. Gail didn’t take it down because she could just get Andy to knock on the door when it was time to go to work. Maybe moving into this building wasn’t so bad.

The best part of moving was waiting for her upstairs so Gail opened the door to the building and made her way up. She quickly made her way up the stairs and opened her front door. When she didn’t immediately see Holly she had to swallow the fear that she’d been taken again. Holly was probably just in the bathroom.

Gail decide that since they were going to eat ice cream and drink wine that she could just change into the workout pants and be more comfortable. After she hung up her jacket she made her way to the bedroom.

She stopped cold when she saw Holly. Her girlfriend was standing in front of the bed with a tub of ice cream in one hand and Robocop on DVD in the other. She was in her underwear and one of Gail’s police academy t-shirts, her glasses pushed on top of her head. She could have been standing there in matching lingerie and Gail wouldn’t think that she was hotter than she was right then.

Before Holly could say anything, Gail pounced on her. She got a running jump and latched onto Holly. Holly managed to hold Gail up for a moment before she let herself fall back onto the bed. They were both laughing when they landed.

“Did you miss me that much?” Holly asked as Gail who was sitting up, straddling her hips.

Gail leaned back down with a sly smile. She stopped breaths before kissing Holly and reached out toward Holly’s hand. Then she grinned fully, “Nope.” She yanked the ice cream out of Holly’s hand and rolled off of her girlfriend. “You got my favorite.”

Holly pushed up on her elbows and watched Gail take the DVD out of her other hand and put it in the player in the bedroom. Holly moved up the bed to lean back on the pillows, “You’re weird.”

“You’re weirder,” Gail retorted automatically. Then she grabbed a spoon Holly got off of the nightstand and plopped down next to Holly.

Holly crossed her legs and grabbed the ice cream away from Gail, “Touché.”

Gail used her newly ice cream-less state to change into something more comfortable. Once she was in sweats, she curled up in the bed with Holly. Holly willingly surrendered the ice cream and smiled when she was rewarded with a kiss. Gail paused, close to Holly. She had to say, “Thank you for letting me move in.”

“I’m glad you did,” Holly confessed. She kissed Gail, this time a little deeper. It was still a sweet kiss and Holly was still smiling. She meant what she said. She didn’t need protection anymore, but she liked having Gail around.

The opening explosion alerting them to the start of the movie. They were content to lean on each other and share the ice cream while watching the movie.

As the closing credits rolled, Gail turned to Holly to ask what happened to the wine. That’s when she found Holly asleep. She was laying out completely on her side of the bed. Her glasses were crooked and a there was a spoon in her hand.

A lot of things happened since they met, not all of them great, but Gail knew that all of them brought her closer to Holly. She knew for the first time that she had let her walls down for the one person who wouldn’t burn down everything behind them. Holly was everything that she wanted and needed. Holly was everything.

Gail took Holly’s glasses off of her head and set them on the nightstand. Then she attempted to take the spoon. Holly’s grip on the spoon was firm though so Gail just resolved to leave it there. Gail laid down and pulled the blanket over to two of them. She put her hand on Holly’s hip and then pushed it to the small of her back then up her back. She scooted closer to Holly and tucked her girlfriend’s head under her chin.

Holly squirmed around to get more comfortable in Gail’s arms and then relaxed, slipping into a deeper sleep. She mumbled something about decomposition before going quiet again.

Gail smiled and kissed the top of Holly’s head. She quietly and lovingly added, “You’re so weird.” She kissed Holly’s head again and then closed her eyes, knowing that she and Holly were both safe and sound in their apartment and each other’s arms.

* * *

The End


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